Poll: Perry leads Romney; Bachmann fades

WASHINGTON, Sept. 7 (UPI) -- Texas Gov. Rick Perry jumped ahead of former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney for the Republican presidential nomination, a Washington Post poll indicates.

Perry, who announced his candidacy three weeks ago, now is perceived by Republicans as having the best shot at beating President Obama, results of the Washington Post-ABC News poll released Tuesday indicate.

Among Republicans and GOP-leaning independents, Perry pushed ahead with 27 percent of the vote, followed by Romney with 22 percent. Former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, who has yet to announce her intentions, picked up 14 percent, U.S. Rep. Ron Paul of Texas collected 8 percent and Rep. Michele Bachmann of Minnesota, whose luster is fading after her first-place finish in the Iowa straw poll, tallied 6 percent.

Concerning matching up against Obama, 30 percent of Republicans and GOP-leaning independents say Perry is the one with the best chance of winning in 2012 and 20 percent pegged Romney, a drop of 12 points since mid-July, results indicate.

Among registered voters, Romney leads Obama, 49 percent to 45 percent. Perry also is ahead of the president, 47 percent to 46 percent.

Results are based on a nationwide telephone survey of 1,001 adults conducted Aug. 29-Sept. 1. The margin of error is 3.5 percentage points.