Poll: Bloomberg’s support falls 3 points after Nevada debate

Former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg has dropped in favorability days after drawing boos at his debut debate performance as a Democratic presidential candidate, according to new Morning Consult polling.

By the numbers: 17% of Democratic primary voters list Bloomberg as their top choice if a primary or caucus were held in their state — down from 20% before the Las Vegas debate. His net favorability has fallen 20 points from Morning Consult's pre-debate poll, when 25% of Democratic primary voters found him unfavorable. Now, 35% find him unfavorable.

• He stands in third place in this poll, behind Sen. Bernie Sanders at 30%, followed by former Vice President Joe Biden with 19% support from Democratic voters.
• The poll, released Thursday, was conducted with 2,609 voters and has a 2-point margin of error. Net favorability refers to "the share with favorable views minus those with unfavorable views," per the Morning Consult.

Why it matters: This dip is "the first statistically significant decline in Bloomberg’s first-choice support since he entered the race in November," Morning Consult's Eli Yokley writes.

Flashback: On the debate stage, Sen. Elizabeth Warren painted Bloomberg as the same kind of racist and sexist that Democrats have repeatedly accused President Trump of being.

• Warren drew cheers in Nevada when she challenged Bloomberg to release women from "nondisclosure agreements both for sexual harassment and for gender discrimination in the workplace."

Go deeper:

• Bloomberg's debate backfire could seal it for Bernie
• Bloomberg's rough debut