Nikki Haley ties with Ron DeSantis in poll while Trump unequivocally leads the field

While the pair are tied for second place, former president Donald Trump remains the frontrunner, with 59 percent of Republican voters saying they will back him in 2024.

Trump is the only GOP contestant who managed to crack double-digit support in the poll, which was conducted between Oct. 16-17 among 1,578 registered voters across the country.

Since the last poll was conducted in September, Haley saw her support grow from 3 to 8 percent, while DeSantis lost four points. Behind them sits Chris Christie at 4 percent, as well as Mike Pence and Vivek Ramaswamy, who are tied at 3 percent.

RealClear Politics' Sept. 30 to Oct. 20 aggregate, which takes the average of ten top polls, shows DeSantis at 12.7 percent nationally, with Haley trailing at 7.8 percent. Emerson's survey is the only one in which they are tied.

As the New York Post reports, the two candidates have been actively attacking one another in their campaigns as of late. DeSantis went after Haley for her stance on whether the United States should accept refugees from Gaza, and created an ad campaign that highlighted her suggestion that it's as simple as being able to "separate civilians from terrorists."

Haley, in turn, released a DeSantis attack ad criticizing his campaign.

"Why is Desperate DeSantis attacking Nikki Haley?" the ad asks. "He's losing to Nikki. And it’s easy to see why. Nikki's out-classed him at every turn. Sorry Ron. Fake Attacks. Five campaign 'reboots.' Phony smiles. Your desperation is showing."

The two also sparred at the latest GOP debate, which Trump skipped, instead electing to hold an event for autoworkers in Michigan.