Poll: Dead heat for Dems, GOP hopefuls

DES MOINES, Iowa, Jan. 1 (UPI) -- The two leading Democratic and Republican presidential hopefuls are knotted atop a CNN poll released Tuesday, two days before the Iowa party caucuses.

Sens. Hillary Clinton, D-N.Y., and Barack Obama, D-Ill., are in a statistical dead heat in Iowa, the CNN/Opinion Research Poll indicated. Among Democrats, Clinton was favored by 33 percent of likely Democratic caucus-goers and 31 percent supported Obama. Considering the survey's margin of error of 4.5 percentage points in the Democratic race, the race is virtually tied, CNN reported.

Former Sen. John Edwards, D-N.C., is in third place in the poll at 22 percent.

The Democratic front-runners each gained 3 points since the CNN Iowa poll taken mid-December, while Edwards lost 4 points.

On the GOP side, former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney got the nod of 31 percent of likely Republican caucus-goers, while 28 percent support former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee. Because of the 5 percent margin of error, the race between the two is a statistical dead heat.

Former Sen. Fred Thompson of Tennessee placed third in the poll at 13 percent.

Romney picked up 6 points since the CNN Iowa poll in mid-December, while Huckabee dropped 5 points.