Poll: Bush leads GOP field

Though former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush (R) leads other possible 2016 GOP presidential contenders, the party’s field is competitive, according to a new poll.

{mosads}Seventeen percent of Republicans surveyed in a new CNN/ORC poll said they would most likely support Bush. Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker (R) followed Bush with 12 percent.

Sens. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) and Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) both garnered 11 percent support, and former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee got 9 percent.

Bush is also perceived by the public as having attributes that would make him an attractive candidate.

Twenty-one percent of Republicans believe he would be the strongest leader out of anyone in the GOP field, and 27 percent believe he has the right experience to be president. Twenty-six percent believe he is the candidate most likely to beat the Democrat running in the general election.

He and Rubio tied for being the candidate who best represents the future of the Republican Party.

Hillary Clinton continues to prevail over the rest of the Democratic field.

Fifty-eight percent of Democrats said they would be enthusiastic if she were to run for president; 26 percent said they would be enthusiastic if Vice President Biden ran.

Though Rubio is trailing Clinton in a hypothetical match-up, 55 percent to 41 percent, he outperforms the rest of the Republican field when it comes to taking on the former secretary of State.

The poll comes after several candidates, including Rubio, Paul, Clinton and Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas), announced they will run for president.

The candidates now are making their first contact with voters under the banner of their official campaigns and looking to show donors they can get the support needed to be competitive in the primaries.

The CNN/ORC poll has a sample of 1,018 adults and a margin of error of plus or minus 3 percentage points. It was conducted from April 16-19.