Polls

President Obama trails in head-to-head matchups against both Mitt Romney and Newt Gingrich in 12 swing states that Obama won in 2008, according to a USA Today-Gallup poll released on Tuesday.

Rep. Mazie Hirono (D-Hawaii) is well poised to lock up the Democratic nomination for Hawaii's open Senate seat, according to a poll released Monday by Hirono's campaign.

Hirono takes 54 percent of Democratic primary voters, compared to 36 percent for former Rep. Ed Case (D-Hawaii), Hirono's main competition in the primary.

And while 50 percent approve of the job Hirono is doing on Congress, only 40 percent feel that way about Case's tenure, the survey by Democratic pollster Pete Brodnitz showed. But Case hasn't been in the House for the past four years, so it's not surprising that voters might be more positive about Hirono, who won Case's old seat in 2006.

The poll also showed that primary voters consider Hirono to be more competitive than Case in a general election against former Gov. Linda Lingle (R), the presumed Republican nominee who was recruited by GOP leaders in Washington.

The release of the campaign's internal poll suggested Democrats are eager to demonstrate before the primary that Hirono can be competitive against Lingle, in part because Lingle beat Hirono in the race for governor in 2002, a stinging loss for Democrats in a deep-blue state. Hirono had defeated Case in the primary that year before losing to Lingle in the general.

Democrats are faring better among Independent voters and Republicans' lead is weakening in battleground GOP-controlled House districts, according to a new poll from a Democratic firm.

Democratic pollster Stanley Greenberg surveyed 1,000 likely voters in 60 congressional districts where a Republican is in control but Democrats are hopeful they can win in 2012. Democrats need to flip 25 Republican seats to take back control of the House, and have their own incumbents to protect as well.

The poll found that the Republican advantage among Independent voters has dried up 13 points since September, and they now hold only a 6 percent margin over Democrats. Six in 10 wanted their Republican congressman to work with President Obama to address the country's problems.

In general-election presidential match-ups, Mitt Romney is a point ahead of Obama and Newt Gingrich holds a two-point lead, but both are within the margin of error.

"The president is now dead even in these districts, while the image of everything Republican has fallen," wrote Greenberg and Democratic strategist James Carville in a memo. "With numbers virtually identical to those of Democratic incumbents leading into the 2010 disaster, the House is surely in play in 2012."

GOP presidential front-runner Newt Gingrich still leads the Republican field in Iowa, but Mitt Romney and Ron Paul are back within striking distance, according to an American Research Group poll released on Monday.

A new poll from the University of Iowa shows Newt Gingrich holding his double-digit lead in the state among likely caucus-goers, garnering 30 percent of voters.

According to the Hawkeye Poll, Mitt Romney trailed with 20 percent, while Ron Paul rounded out the top three with 11 percent of likely caucus-goers. Of the candidates in single digits, Michele Bachmann led with 9 percent, followed closely by Rick Perry at 8 percent and Rick Santorum at 5 percent.

Eleven percent of those surveyed remain undecided, and 4 percent signaled support for Herman Cain, who has now dropped out of the nominating contest amid allegations of sexual impropriety.

The new survey by NBC News-Marist shows Gingrich pulling ahead of Romney in two key early-voting states.

Newt Gingrich is leading the GOP presidential field in Mitt Romney’s home state of Michigan, according to a Strategic National poll released on Friday.

Gingrich took 30.75 percent among likely Republican primary voters, followed by Romney at 28.74 percent.

“If Newt Gingrich wins Michigan, the contest will be over and he'll win the nomination,” Strategic National CEO John Yob told The Grand Rapids Press.

Rounding out the field were Ron Paul at 7.5 percent, Michele Bachmann at 6.3 percent, Jon Huntsman at 4 percent, and Rick Santorum at 3 percent.

It’s the latest troubling poll data for Romney, who according to a Gallup poll released Friday trails Gingrich by 14 points nationwide.

Gingrich also holds double-digit leads over Romney in three of the first four early-voting states of Iowa, South Carolina and Florida, although Romney still leads in New Hampshire.

Michigan is Romney’s home state, where his father, George Romney, was once the governor.

Romney has taken heat in Michigan from unions, former Gov. Jennifer Granholm (D) and small groups of protesters for his position on the Obama administration's auto bailouts, although Gingrich also opposed the bailouts.

In 2008, Romney wrote an op-ed for The New York Times called “Let Detroit Go Bankrupt.”

The Michigan primary will take place on Feb. 28.

The poll shows Newt Gingrich in the lead at 37 percent, followed by Mitt Romney at 23 percent.

A new Pennsylvania poll shows President Obama leading his two most likely GOP opponents and Sen. Bob Casey Jr. (D-Pa.) in good shape for reelection.

The Muhlenberg College/Allentown Morning Call poll showed that 51 percent of voters believe Obama does not deserve reelection. But he led Mitt Romney by 45 percent to 41 and Newt Gingrich by a substantial 52 percent to 35 in the Democratic-leaning state.

Casey appears to be on safer ground. A majority of voters approve of the job he is doing, at 54 percent, while just 24 percent disapprove, and 54 percent likewise believe he should be reelected. That's up from a 40 percent approval rating in an August poll.

Republicans hope they can remain competitive in Pennsylvania, a large state with 20 votes in the Electoral College. But these poll numbers indicate their eventual nominees for president and Senate there will have uphill battles.

The poll of 422 registered voters was conducted from Nov. 28 through Dec. 7 and has a margin of error of plus or minus five percentage points.

Republican enthusiasm about voting in the 2012 election has fallen sharply over the last three months, from 58 percent in September to 49 percent in December, according to a Gallup poll released Thursday.

Democratic voters have held steady since September, with 44 percent saying they were more enthusiastic.

According to Gallup, voting enthusiasm is a strong indicator of the eventual outcome of the election.

The poll indicates that the whipsaw battle for the GOP nomination is taking its toll on voters. Donald Trump, Michele Bachmann, Rick Perry and Herman Cain have all taken their turns atop the polls.

Cain recently suspended his campaign, saying he wanted to protect his family from the mounting allegations of sexual harassment and marital infidelity against him.

Newt Gingrich is the current front-runner, but some members of the GOP establishment have publicly spurned him.

Sen. Tom Coburn (R-Okla.) said that he cannot support Gingrich because the former House Speaker lacks leadership skills.

And Rep. Peter King (R-N.Y.) has called Gingrich “too self-centered,” and said he “does not have the capacity to control himself.”

Following Gingrich in the polls is Mitt Romney, who has struggled mightily to gain traction with conservatives in the party, who are unconvinced of his fealty to their cause because of his reputation as a flip-flopper from his past campaigns.