TRUMP MAINTAINS LEAD AMONG REPUBLICANS

Donald Trump continues to maintain his hold atop the contest for the Republican presidential nomination, with retired neurosurgeon Ben Carson keeping a clear grip on second place and the rest of the large field scrambling to find a foothold, according to a new Washington Post-ABC News poll.

Trump’s support has held steady over the past month; 32 percent of Republican and GOP-leaning voters currently back him compared with 33 percent in early September. The numbers suggest that mixed reviews of his performance in the second Republican debate in California did little to dampen the enthusiasm of his supporters. Carson, meanwhile, has ticked up from 20 percent to 22 percent. The only other Republican in double digits among registered Republicans and Republicanleaning independents is Florida Sen. Marco Rubio, at 10 percent. That represents a three-point increase in a month.

Former Florida governor Jeb Bush runs fourth at 7 percent, followed by Texas Sen. Ted Cruz at 6 percent and former HewlettPackard executive Carly Fiorina at 5 percent.

The current gap between Trump and Carson at the top and the rest of a field comprised mostly of elected and former elected officials underscores again the unusual nature of the Republican presidential race and a conservative electorate registering its disapproval with status quo politics and insiders.

A majority of Republicans and GOPleaning independents (57 percent) say they want the person who succeeds President Obama to be someone from outside the political establishment, rather than a candidate with experience working inside the system. Democrats, meanwhile, rate political experience more highly than outsider status.