A new Rasmussen poll shows former Gov. Mitt Romney with a six-point lead over President Obama, while another indicates Iowa caucus-goers really are giving former Sen. Rick Santorum another look.
According to the first poll, the former Massachusetts governor leads Obama 45 percent to 39 percent, with 10 percent preferring another candidate and 6 percent undecided.
This is Romney’s best ever showing yet in a head-to-head matchup against Obama, and just one week ago Rasmussen said he was trailing the president by three points.
Romney’s perceived electability has been a key selling point for his campaign this year. A CNN/ORC poll released on Wednesday showed 41 percent of Iowa caucus-goers believe he would have the best chance of beating President Obama next fall.
In Iowa, Rasmussen has Romney narrowly leading the Republican field with 23 percent support, followed by Texas Rep. Ron Paul with 22 percent. As was the case in the CNN poll released on Wednesday, Santorum appears to have rocketed to third place with 16 percent support.
It’s not all good news for Santorum, however. The Washington Post’s Chris Cillizza notes that only 4 percent of Iowa caucus-goers believe he’s the Republican candidate with the best chance of beating Obama. And in a year when recapturing the White House is the foremost priority for the GOP, that skepticism may prove to be a major stumbling block to Santorum’s hopes of winning Iowa.
The margin of error for both Rasmussen polls in +/- 4.5 percent.