Clinton leads Trump by 7 points, race tightens in key states

Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton has opened up a significant lead of seven percentage points over her Republican rival Donald Trump, a latest poll has said, even as other surveys indicated a tightening race in the key states of Pennsylvania and Ohio.

The Monmouth University poll, conducted from last Thursday to Sunday, shows Clinton leading Trump by 46 to 39 per cent.

According to the poll, Clinton is winning 85 per cent of self-identified Democrats, while Trump has the support of fewer Republicans at 78 per cent.

Clinton also has a slight advantage among those who identify as independents, leading by 37 to 32 per cent.

However, a new poll released by the Three Emerson College showed that that Clinton and Trump each have 43 per cent support in Ohio.

In Michigan, Clinton leads Trump by five points, (45 to 40 per cent) and by three points in Pennsylvania, (46 to 43 per cent).

The Republican nominee is doing better among independents in all three States.

According to RealClearPolitics, which keeps track of all major polls, Clinton is leading Trump by 6.1 percentage points in the average of all these polls.

Meanwhile, in another poll conducted by HuffPost/YouGov, as many as 54 per cent of Republican and party-leaning voters believe Trump isn't the best choice as the party's nominee.

On the other hand, 56 per cent of Democratic and Democratic-leaning voters are content with Hillary Clinton as their party's nominee.