Polls: Gingrich Rising Again, Tied Nationally With Romney, Ahead In FL

Newt Gingrich's momentum coming out of South Carolina is reflected in some recent national and Florida polls that suggest Mitt Romney's campaign has its work cut out for it in the next eight days.

Gingrich, who until recently lagged significantly behind Romney in Gallup's national poll, is now essentially tied with Romney who had 29 percent report among Republicans versus Gingrich's 28 percent.

And there's nothing subtle about the shift. Romney has lost much of the lift under his wings while Gingrich has gained it. But this isn't the first time it's happened. As Gallup explains:

Romney held a 23-point lead over Gingrich as recently as Jan. 11-15. Thus, in a matter of one week, Republicans who are registered to vote have shifted their support substantially — with Romney dropping 8 points and Gingrich gaining 14 points. The latest Gallup tracking update covers Jan. 18-22, encompassing Gingrich's come-from-behind 12-point victory over Romney in Saturday's South Carolina Republican primary. Gingrich began to gain on Romney well before Saturday's vote, however, most likely reflecting his performance in the two nationally televised debates held in South Carolina last Monday and Thursday.

This shifting of support between Romney and Gingrich is not a new phenomenon. Romney led Gingrich by as much as 19 points among national Republican adults in polling conducted in September, only to see that lead evaporate as Gingrich charged ahead to a 15-point lead...

The good news for Romney in this is that his campaign as well as those of Paul and Santorum were able to bring Gingrich low before. So they've already proven it can be done.

Meanwhile, two polls in Florida show Gingrich with leads significantly larger than the margin of error. Rasmussen puts Gingrich at 41 percent, Romney at 32 percent, Rick Santorum at 11 percent and Ron Paul at 8 percent.

Insider Advantage places Gingrich at 34.4 percent, Romney at 25.6 percent, Paul at 13.1 percent and Santorum at 10.7 percent.

Copyright 2012 National Public Radio. To see more, visit http://www.npr.org/.