On the heels of a new Iowa Poll, presidential contender Sen. Bernie Sanders said Sunday he doesn’t see any candidate, including himself, getting more that 50 percent in February's Iowa caucuses, because of the large field of nearly two dozen Democratic candidates.
“Four years ago, there were only two of us in the race, and we split the vote about 50 percent each,” Sanders said on CNN’s “State of the Union.
” “This time, we've got a whole lot of candidates. … We're not going to get 50 percent of the vote in Iowa. I don't think anybody will.”The new Des Moines Register/CNN/Mediacom poll, out Saturday, showed former Vice President Joe Biden in first place with 24 percent support, an 8 percent lead over Sanders.
The race for second was closer — 16 percent of respondents backed Sanders, while 15 percent backed Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren and 14 percent supported South Bend, Ind., Mayor Pete Buttigieg.
Conducted by the Iowa firm Selzer & Co., the poll of 600 likely Democratic caucus goers June 2-5 had an overall margin of error of plus or minus 4 percentage points.
Speaking from Cedar Rapids, Iowa, where Sanders plans to march with McDonalds workers, the Vermont senator expressed confidence that his campaign will ultimately win the state and New Hampshire.
“I think we have a very strong chance of being the candidate who will defeat the worst president in the modern history of this country, Donald Trump,” Sanders said.
Article originally published on POLITICO Magazine