By Kara Stiles, Jun. 6, 2015, MSNBC

After garnering considerable support among conservative voters, Ben Carson’s campaign appears to have hit some unexpected speed bumps. The GOP presidential hopeful and campaign first-timer finds himself in a tough spot after four key staffers announced they were leaving his campaign.

According to the Washington Post, the four recent resignations have “gutted the core of Carson’s apparatus and left the 63-year-old first-time candidate with only a handful of experienced advisers.” The ill-timed departure of four of Carson’s key players – campaign chairman Terry Giles, national finance chairman Jeff Reeter, deputy campaign manager Stephen Rubino and general counsel Kathy Freberg – have left him in a bit of a political pickle.

Since announcing his bid for the nomination last month in his hometown of Detroit, Michigan, the retired neurosurgeon has gained substantial steam among tea partiers and other right-wing organizations – positioning the self-proclaimed non-politician as a legitimate contender for the GOP nomination. Last week’s Fox News poll showed Carson sitting close to the top of a growing list of Republican 2016 contenders. GOP primary voters ranked him just slightly behind more traditional candidates like former Florida governor Jeb Bush and Wisconsin governor Scott Walker.