Since entering the race for the 2012 Republican presidential nomination in June, US Rep. Michele Bachmann of Minnesota has surged in national polls and surveys of key states — and a new poll has her leading the pack in Iowa, home of the first caucus. Previous polls had shown Romney, who placed second in the caucus when he ran in 2008, ahead of the field in Iowa. A new poll unveiled on Sunday, commissioned by TheIowaRepublican.com and taken by Voter/Consumer Research, reveals that Bachmann has moved ahead of former Gov. Mitt Romney of Massachusetts in the Hawkeye State. The poll has Bachmann with 25 percent, followed by Romney with 21 percent. Former Gov. Tim Pawlenty of Minnesota tied with businessman Herman Cain for third with 9 percent. US Rep. Ron Paul of Texas placed fifth with 6 percent. Former US House Speaker Newt Gingrich of Georgia took sixth with 4 percent, followed by former US Sen. Rick Santorum of Pennsylvania with 2 percent and former Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman with 1 percent. Besides besting the field, the poll has other good news for Bachmann — she has the highest approval ratings of any of the candidates. The Minnesota congresswoman, who has played up her Iowa roots, garnered 76 percent favorability while only 11 percent of those surveyed had an unfavorable view of her. Romney was seen as favorable by 66 percent, while 25 percent saw him as unfavorable. While 60 percent viewed Pawlenty as favorable, 12 percent viewed him as unfavorable. Cain, like Bachmann …