Watch out Hillary Clinton, Rand Paul is gaining on you.
According to a new Quinnipiac University Swing State Poll, former secretary of state and likely 2016 Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton has seen her lead in three swing states slowly slip away to potential Republican nominees.
In Colorado and Iowa, Republican Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul — who officially launched his presidential campaign this week — leads Clinton 44 percent to 41 percent and 43 percent to 42 percent, respectively. Virginia is her brightest spot, where she leads Paul 47 percent to 43 percent — though he is clearly in striking distance.
Paul isn’t the only Republican with a strong performance in Colorado — other GOPers are effectively tied with her as well: Florida Sen. Marco Rubio garners 41 percent to Clinton’s 40 percent, Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker gets 42 percent to her 41 percent, Texas Sen. Ted Cruz is one percentage point behind her and Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush trails her by three.
This story rings true for Clinton compared to Republicans in Iowa, as well. Paul is the only Republican candidate that leads her, but everyone else is within striking distance: Walker trails her 44-40, Rubio and Cruz trail her by three percentage points (43-40) and Bush gets 40 percent to her 41 percent.
Virginia is the only state in which she has a lead over Republican candidates — though they are not in the double digits.
Perhaps the biggest takeaway is that voters in each state say Clinton is not honest and trustworthy. Since February, her favorability has dropped significantly in Colorado and Iowa, while remaining unchanged in Virginia, the poll found.
“Ominous for Hillary Clinton is the broad scope of the movement today compared to her showing in Quinnipiac University’s mid-February survey. It isn’t just one or two Republicans who are stepping up; it’s virtually the entire GOP field that is running better against her,” said Peter A. Brown, assistant director of the Quinnipiac University Poll.
The random telephone-based survey of roughly 900 Colorado voters, 950 Iowa voters and 950 Virginia voters was conducted March 29-April 7. Each group of voters had a margin of error of plus or minus three percentage points.
