Rev. Al Sharpton is in a second-place tie heading into the Feb. 3 South Carolina Democratic presidential primary, according to the most recent poll in the state.

Sharpton has the support of 12 percent of those polled, along with retired General Wesley Clark. Former Vermont Gov. Howard Dean leads the pack in South Carolina - but not by much - at 16 percent, according to the American Research Group.

With a margin for error of 4 percent, the results actually put Dean, Clark and Sharpton in a statistical dead heat.

The largest group of voters - 29 percent - remain undecided, according to the poll.

South Carolina isn't the only state where Sharpton is showing potential. Always a vote-getter in New York City, the reverand - whose supporters include Barbra Streisand, among others - has a full slate of delegates in a well-organized March 3 New York primary campaign.

(In the 1994 primary against beloved Democrat Daniel Patrick Moynihan, Sharpton polled 26 percent of the vote and in 1997, he lost a close primary to Ruth Messenger for New York City mayor - 40 percent to 32 percent.)

A strong showing in either South Carolina or New York could also embolden Republican mischief makers as the primary season continues.