Carson draws alongside Trump in latest US poll

The latest major US political poll shows the Republican and Democratic front-runners are losing ground to their competitors.

Donald Trump is now essentially tied with Ben Carson, another non-politician and retired neurosurgeon, in the Republican race for the presidential nomination.

Former Hewlett Packard chief executive and businesswoman Carly Fiorina has also gained significant ground to be in third-equal position.

Over at the Democrats, Hillary Clinton’s main opponent, Senator Bernie Sanders, is also making serious inroads, the latest Wall Street Journal/NBC News poll finds.

Mr Carson is now the preferred pick of 20% of Republican primary voters, compared with the 21% who favour Mr Trump.

Behind them are Mrs Fiorina and Florida Senator Marco Rubio, both with 11% support.

In fact, Mr Carson overtakes Mr Trump in the new survey, conducted from September 20-24, when voters’ first choice is combined with their second.

In recent weeks, the Republicans' candidates have narrowed, with former senator Rick Perry and Wisconsin governor Scott Walker pulling out.

This has also benefited Mrs Fiorina, who barely registered in the July survey before her impressive performances in the televised debates. Some 28% of Republican primary voters picked her as their first or second choice in the September survey, up from 2% in the July poll.

By contrast, former Florida governor Jeb Bush lost the most support. Some 7% of Republican primary voters named him as their top pick, down from 14% in July and 22% in June.

Meanwhile, Mrs Clinton is leading Mr Sanders by 15 percentage points among primary voters, 53% to 38%. In July, she had led by 34 points. Other announced Democratic candidates register 1% support or less.

The Democratic race will tightens if Vice President Joe Biden is added to the mix. He is likely to draw the bulk of his support directly from Mrs Clinton rather than the socialist Mr Sanders.

Mrs Clinton’s lead over Mr Sanders falls to 7 percentage points if the ballot includes Mr Biden, who places third.
 

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