Polls

Mitt Romney might be leading or tied in the polls for the key primary states, but only 42 percent are able to identify him as a Mormon, according to a Public Religion Research Institute poll released Thursday.

Forty-five percent of those polled said they didn’t know what Romney’s religion was, while 10 percent misidentified him as Protestant, Catholic or some other denomination, or said they didn’t think he was religious.

Even as the primary season heats up and the candidates have been scrutinized on nationally televised debates that have pulled in massive ratings, the number of people who can correctly identify Romney as a Mormon remains virtually unchanged from July, when 40 percent were able to do so.

According to the poll, Romney leads the other candidates, with 20 percent saying he has political views that are closest to their own. Herman Cain followed with 17 percent, Ron Paul with 12 percent and Rick Perry with 10 percent.

But Romney polled the lowest when people were asked which candidate held religious beliefs that were closest to their own. Twenty percent said none of the candidates shared their religious views, while 12 percent identified with Cain, 11 percent with Perry, 9 percent with Paul and 7 percent with Romney.

Mitt Romney has regained his lead in the race for the Republican presidential nomination, according to a new poll released Wednesday.

Romney has solid footing at the front of the field in the first four early-voting states New Hampshire, Florida, Iowa and South Carolina, according to a new survey by CNN/Time/ORC International.

Romney holds a wide lead in New Hampshire, widely considered his state to lose, with 40 percent of those polled saying they would vote for him if the primary were held today.

Romney’s gains in Iowa are more surprising, since Romney has failed to campaign in the Hawkeye state this cycle. Romney polled at 24 percent support in the new poll, leading businessman Herman Cain, who took 21 percent, within the poll’s error margin. Romney and Cain poll well ahead of the other candidates in the state, where Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-Minn.), who has campaigned hard in the state and won the Iowa Straw Poll in August, has fallen to 6 percent support.

In South Carolina, Romney and Cain are polling a similarly close race. Romney has the support of 25 percent and Cain 23 percent there.

Romney took 30 percent in Florida compared to Cain’s 18 percent.

Texas Gov. Rick Perry, who entered the race in August as a strong contender in the polls and a threat to Romney’s first place status, did not make it past fourth place in any of the states polled.

The survey also asked likely voters how firmly decided they are on their candidate choice, with the majority in all four states indicating voters are still willing to be swayed.

“Only about a third of the respondents in any state say their minds are made up, and that number drops to just 23 percent in Iowa. Meanwhile, in New Hampshire and Florida one in seven voters are still assessing the field and don't favor any candidate yet,” said CNN Polling Director Keating Holland.

The survey was conducted amongst self-identified Republican voters last week and has an overall sampling error of plus or minus 5 percentage points.

Presidential candidate Herman Cain has moved past rival Mitt Romney and is now the Republican favorite in Ohio, a new poll showed, while Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio) is in good shape for his reelection battle.

But President Obama remains unpopular in the state — a likely drag on Brown's campaign.

Cain leads the GOP pack with 28 percent support among Ohio Republicans in the Quinnipiac University poll released Wednesday. Romney, formerly the front-runner in the state, comes in second, with 23 percent. Texas Gov. Rick Perry has dropped to 4 percent, amid an all-out effort to revamp his struggling campaign.

Just over half of Ohio voters disapprove of Obama, and 49 percent say he doesn't deserve a second term.

Obama still fares better than all of the GOP candidates, but the gap is narrowest when the president is pitted against Romney. Obama gets 45 percent to Romney's 41 percent in a general-election matchup in Ohio.

The poll also brought good news for Brown, who widened his lead over Republican state Treasurer Josh Mandel. Brown holds a 15-point margin over Mandel, up 2 percentage points from one month ago.

The other Republican who had been vying for the GOP nomination, former state Sen. Kevin Coughlin, has dropped out, clearing the way for the young state treasurer to take on Brown.

The poll of 1,668 voters was conducted Oct. 17-23 and had a margin of error of 2.4 percentage points.

Ohio state Treasurer Josh Mandel has narrowed Sen. Sherrod Brown's (D-Ohio) lead over him, but Brown is also becoming slightly more popular, a poll released Friday showed.

Brown leads Mandel, the front-runner in the Republican primary to challenge Brown, 48-40, according to the Public Policy Polling survey. Two months ago, only 33 percent said they would support Mandel in a general-election match-up against Brown.

But Brown's approval rating has inched up, jumping three percentage points over the past two months — within the margin of error.

Former Ohio state Sen. Kevin Coughlin (R), who is also vying for the nomination, has climbed against Brown, but only by three three points. Brown now leads him 48-37.

Yet both Mandel and Coughlin are still relative unknowns. Two in three Ohio voters are unfamiliar with Mandel, who took office as state treasurer in January.

The poll did not ask voters to rank the GOP candidates, but Mandel has been knighted by national Republicans including Sen. Jim DeMint (R-S.C.), and is the presumptive favorite in the primary.

Democratic firm PPP polled 581 Ohio voters between Oct. 13 and 16, using automated telephone interviews. The poll had a margin of error of plus or minus 4.1 percentage points.

Sen. Robert Menendez (D) is doing better among New Jersey voters but is still on thin ice heading into his reelection in 2012, a poll released Thursday showed.

Menendez's 42 percent approval rating is up from the 39 percent he took in August, and he has shaken 7 points off his disapproval rating during that time. But voters are almost evenly divided about whether he should be given another term in the Senate, according to the Quinnipiac University poll.

A loss by Menendez in the Democratic-leaning state would put Republicans one seat closer to the four they must flip to take control of the Senate in 2012.

The lackluster vote of confidence is worrying for Menendez, because it comes before Republicans even have a candidate to rally behind. The GOP field to try to unseat Menendez has yet to take shape, partially because New Jersey holds off-year legislative elections in November, consuming much of the immediate political focus. 

If Republicans mount a solid challenger, Menendez could have a very difficult contest ahead of him. New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie's (R-N.J.) popularity has been on the rise, and with his decision not to run for president, he could be a major force behind the Republican candidate.

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More Americans would support a Democrat for Congress in 2012, but more think Republicans would do equally well or better on the economy.

Democrats have an 8-point lead over the GOP about one year out from the election, with 48 percent of U.S. adults saying they're leaning toward voting for the Democrat in their district, according to a Reuters/Ipsos poll released Oct. 13.

Yet asked which party would do better on the economy, taxes, growth and competition, Republicans fared better or were statistically tied with Democrats in every category. On reducing the deficit, Republicans have a 9-point lead.

The poll illustrates a bright point but also a quagmire for Democrats that mirrors that of President Obama, who voters like personally but think hasn't performed well on restoring growth to the economy.

In Congress, Republican opposition to efforts to seek compromise on spending and debt issues has left a sour taste in the mouth of many Americans. But they're still leery that Democrats have the right approach to policy after Democratic leadership in the White House and Senate has yet to deliver on economic goals.

Republicans polled picked Mitt Romney as their favorite GOP presidential nominee 23-19 over Herman Cain, the second highest pick. Four months ago, only 6 percent chose Cain, whose dramatic ascent in the GOP race has knocked Rick Perry from his earlier front-runner status.

The poll of 1,113 U.S. adults was conducted Oct. 6-10 and had a margin of error of plus or minus 3 percentage points.

A new poll finds 27 percent of voters say Cain is their first choice, with 23 percent picking Romney.

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One week after Gov. Chris Christie (R-N.J.) announced he isn't running for president, 84 percent of New Jersey voters are glad he bowed out, and his approval rating is higher than ever.

Christie now garners a 58 percent job approval rating, according to a Quinnipiac University poll released Wednesday. In August, only 47 percent approved.

Just 10 percent of voters disagreed that Christie's decision not to run for the GOP nomination was the right one, even though two-thirds said it was at least somewhat likely he would have won.

Surprisingly, the numbers were almost identical for Republicans and Democrats, although women were more likely to say it was the right decision than men.

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A new NBC News/Marist poll shows Romney with just a three-point lead in Iowa over surging rival Herman Cain.

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Mitt Romney and Herman Cain are tied atop the GOP presidential race in Virginia, while Rick Perry has slumped to a distant third, a new poll of Virginia Republicans showed.

The first-tier showing from Cain, a businessman with no elective experience who was a relative unknown just weeks ago, underscores the speed of his ascendancy and the threat he now poses to Romney, Perry and the other candidates.

The Quinnipiac University poll showed both Cain and Romney at 21 percent, with Perry down to 11 percent — less than half of his take in Virginia one month ago. Cain's 21 percent reflects a three-fold expansion over the 6 percent he took last month.

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