Gingrich Ahead in South Carolina, Romney Across the U.S.

... although that was before the whole 'open marriage' thing.

A poll conducted before last night's explosive Republican presidential candidates' debate has found that Newt Gingrich has surged ahead of frontrunner Mitt Romney in South Carolina. Republican party members are to vote in the South Carolina primary tomorrow, and the Public Policy Polling results show Gingrich leading Romney by six percentage points, 35 per cent to 29 per cent. Gingrich's lead was bolstered by strong support among evangelical Christians, who favoured Gingrich to Romney 40 per cent to 22 per cent. Of course, after a question in the debate to Gingrich about an allegation from one of his ex-wives that he had asked for an open marriage, that lead might dissipate just a little. Whoever ends up winning tomorrow will attempt to carry that momentum forward to next week's primary in Nevada. Meanwhile, a Pew Center poll released last night finds that across the country, Romney remains the most popular candidate, with 31 per cent of Republican voters' support, followed by Gingrich (16 per cent), Ron Paul (15 per cent) and Rick Santorum (14 per cent).