Perry edges Romney, Bachmann and Paul in Iowa

Michele Bachmann won the Republican straw poll in Ames, Iowa, and was the leading the state in several polls going into August. And then Rick Perry joined the race for the Republican presidential nomination.

A new Public Policy Polling survey shows Perry, the Texas governor, as the new leader among Republican voters in Iowa at 22 percent, surpassing Bachmann and former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, who received the support of 19 percent and 18 percent, respectively, of the state's Republicans. Texas Rep. Ron Paul came in fourth with 16 percent.

The margin of error for the poll is 5.5 percent.

Perry's base of support in the poll comes mostly from Iowa's most conservative voters, said Tom Jensen, the director of Public Policy Polling.

"These numbers are very bad news for Michele Bachmann, and to a lesser extent Romney," Jensen wrote in a blog post. "It's clear that Bachmann has gotten virtually no momentum out of her victory in the Ames Straw Poll. ...Perry's now winning the voters on the far right that we showed her doing really well with throughout most of June and July. The day of her win in Ames may be remembered as the peak of her campaign."

The Iowa caucuses, the first time Republicans will cast ballots for any of the candidates in the race, will be held in February.