And according to Rasmussen, Bachmann leads Romney by only 1 point in the Hawkeye State:
Likely Iowa Republican caucusgoers rank Texas Gov. Rick Perry as their favorite pick among the 2012 GOP field, according to a new Rasmussen Reports survey released Monday.
Perry was the first choice for 29 percent of respondents. Minnesota Rep. Michele Bachmann received 18 percent support, former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney 17 percent and Texas Rep. Ron Paul 14 percent. No other candidate had more than 4 percent.
Perry’s rank at the top of the poll in Iowa, host of the first-in-the-nation caucuses, reflects recent national polling.
The telephone survey questioned 862 likely Iowa Republican caucusgoers on Aug. 31. The margin of error is plus or minus 3 percentage points, with 95 percent confidence level.
The rest of the field: Cain (4 percent), Santorum (4 percent), Huntsman (3 percent), Gingrich (2 percent), and McCotter (less than 1 percent).