Poll: Romney leads 2016 field among GOP

Mitt Romney has the edge among possible 2016 presidential contenders in a survey of GOP voters released Wednesday, while Hillary Clinton enjoys a huge lead among Democrats.

Romney took the top spot with 19 percent when Republicans were asked whom they would vote for if the primary were held now, according to the Quinnipiac University poll.

{mosads}From Nov. 18-23, 1,623 registered voters nationwide were surveyed with a margin of error of plus or minus 2.5 percentage points. 

Eleven percent of Republicans said that former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush (R) would be their pick.

New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie (R) and conservative author and neurosurgeon Ben Carson each drew shares of 8 percent.

Romney has particularly high name recognition because he has run for president twice before, something that may help him in early polls. He would tie Clinton in a hypothetical matchup.

Clinton demolishes her Democratic competition in a proposed primary, taking 57 percent to Sen. Elizabeth Warren’s (D-Mass.) 13 percent and Vice President Biden’s 9 percent.

In a would-be general election, Christie and Clinton were also tied.

Bush, former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee (R) and Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) trailed Clinton by five points.

No candidate in the poll other than former Sen. Jim Webb (D-Va.) has formed an exploratory committee. But Webb’s aggressive early stance has not won him many supporters — 1 percent of Democrats polled said they would support him in a hypothetical Democratic primary.