Ramaswamy surge continues as more polls show dark horse eclipsing other Trump challengers

Tech mogul Vivek Ramaswamy's bid for the Republican nomination appears to be gaining steam as polling data increasingly substantiates his position as among the top five, or even top three, candidates.

Early reports of a Ramaswamy surge began to materialize early this month and subsequent data has refuted notions that such polls may have been outliers. In the RealClearPolitics polling average, the candidate has attracted 5.5% support, placing him in fourth, albeit just behind former Vice President Mike Pence, who took 5.6% in that metric.

Notably, the average includes at least two older surveys showing Pence either tied with or significantly ahead of Ramaswamy.

It also includes a Harvard-Harris survey released last week that shows Ramaswamy in third place, with 10% support to Pence's 7%. Florida Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis placed second with 12%, while former President Donald Trump remains the clear frontrunner with 52% support.

Ramaswamy is set to appear on the Republican debate stage on Aug. 23. His campaign is one of seven to have met the polling requirements as of Sunday, CNN reported. Fox Business poll data from Iowa and South Carolina appears to have placed him over the edge in that category. He further announced on Saturday that he had met the Republican National Committee's fundraising requirements.

Trump, DeSantis, former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley, South Carolina Sen. Tim Scott, and former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie have also met the polling requirements and all claim to have met the donor threshold.

Pence's campaign appears to have met the polling requirements but says it has not yet met the donor threshold. South Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum's campaign claims to have met the donor threshold.

Ben Whedon is an editor and reporter for Just the News. Follow him on Twitter.