News Analysis: Republican debate may tilt advantage toward more experienced candidates

While recent months have seen a trend toward Americans favoring political outsiders, this week's Republican debate may have marked a turning point in favor of candidates with more experience, U.S. experts said.

Recent months have been good to political outsiders in an environment in which Americans are fed up with Washington elites, and at a time when Congress stands at a low in popularity not seen in many years.

That has boosted the ratings of candidates for the Republican Party (GOP) nomination such as the bombastic billionaire Donald Trump, a political outsider who has taken the race for the nomination by storm and surged to the first place.

Just on Trump's heels -- and ahead in one poll -- is Ben Carson, a retired brain surgeon who has made big gains on his outsider status coupled with an image of honesty and integrity.

But some experts now say that the political insiders -- career politicians seeking the Republican nomination -- are regaining momentum.

"A main outcome of this debate may be a point where so-called 'establishment' candidates began to regain momentum," Dan Mahaffee, an analyst with the Center for the Study of the Presidency and Congress, told Xinhua.

Julian Zelizer, professor of history and public affairs at Princeton University, echoed those sentiments, telling Xinhua that the main outcome of the debate was to bring back the voices of the Republicans with political experience.

While Trump continues to lead the crowded field of GOP candidates, according to Real Clear Politics' polling average, experts said Senator Marco Rubio from the U.S. state of Florida dominated the third nationally televised Republican debate.

Experts said Rubio came across as poised and calm in a chaotic debate setting, playing well to the conservative base and positioning himself as a leader who could bridge the GOP establishment and grass roots activists.

Experts also said Rubio has emerged as the new possible frontrunner.

Washington-based Brookings Institution's senior fellow Darrell West told Xinhua that the debate's main outcome is that Trump has peaked and now is likely to see his poll numbers drop.

Moreover, Carson will undergo continued scrutiny and it will be difficult to maintain his top position, and Rubio is getting another look by the electorate and may start to rise in the polls.

Still, the populist Trump is not likely to fizzle out just yet, although clearly some of the early fervor has died down and there is more space now for others to gain traction, experts said.

"This may be a point where candidates that haven't gained much support see the writing on the wall and drop out," Mahaffee added.

"The Bush campaign may now be in the beginning of the end," he said, referring to Former Florida Governor Jeb Bush, who early on was considered a shoo-in for the nomination, as the son and brother of two former U.S. presidents, but has failed to stand out.

Critics say Bush is boring and lacks an air of excitement around him. While he often discusses policies, American voters tend to gravitate more toward candidates who appear to understand the struggles of ordinary Americans.

Moreover, his fundraising has slowed down considerably, and experts said the air of inevitability that he had six months ago is completely gone. Endit