A new poll shows that Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump and Democratic hopeful Sen. Bernie Sanders have gained strong leads in Iowa, less than two weeks before the first primary caucuses.  

A CNN/ORC poll released Thursday shows Trump holds a commanding 11-point lead in Iowa over the crowded Republican field. The billionaire business man received 37 percent of the vote from likely Republican caucus-goers while Texas Sen. Ted Cruz came in second place with 26 percent of the vote.

Meanwhile, Florida Sen. Marco Rubio ranked in third place with 14 percent, which is more than half of the support that fourth place winner Ben Carson received with just 6 percent of the vote.

The survey, which was conducted Jan. 15-20, also shows Sanders in the lead by 8 points over Democratic front-runner Hillary Clinton. The Vermont senator earned 51 percent of the vote among likely Democratic presidential caucus-goers in the state, while 43 percent backed Clinton.

That's a big jump from a CNN poll released in December that showed Sanders trailing Clinton in the critical first-in-the-nation voting state by 18 points, 54 percent to 36 percent.

In addition, polling data indicates that Cruz is doing well with Republicans who voted in the party's last competitive caucus. Twenty-eight percent of those traditional voters support Cruz, while 30 percent back Trump.

Plus, Clinton has a strong lead over Sanders -- 55 percent to 38 percent -- among Democrats who caucused back in 2008. That means both Trump and Sanders will benefit if more new caucus voters head to the polls next month. 

The former secretary of state also has a big 40-point lead on Sanders when it comes to the issue of foreign policy. Furthermore, more Democrats believe she could win the general election in November, 60 percent to 38 percent.

On the other hand, an overwhelming 67 percent of Democratic caucus-goers said they trust the progressive senator over Clinton when it comes to the economy, compared to 30 percent who chose Clinton.