Texas Rep. Ron Paul is leading the latest CNN poll, the first major victory in the polls by the Texas Republican congressman.
The poll, which finds former Arkansas governor Mike Huckabee leading the pack of potential Republican presidential candidates, also finds Mr. Paul matching up best against President Obama.
The poll finds Mr. Huckabee leading other potential presidential candidates with 16 percent, while 14 percent say they would support a bid by New York real estate mogul Donald Trump. Former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney received 13 percent support and former Alaska governor Sarah Palin receives 11 percent support.
While President Obama defeated each potential Republican contender, Mr. Paul, who announced the formation of his presidential exploratory committee late last month, came closest to defeating the Democratic president. Mr. Paul, the favored candidate of the tea party movement, trails the president by only seven points (52 to 45 percent) in a hypothetical general election showdown.
The poll comes as Mr. Paul struggled in a recent New Hampshire poll showing his garnering just 4 percent support.
The Texas Republican has said he is still considering whether to enter the 2012 presidential campaign, noting that he plans to continue to meet with potential supporters while gauging the level of support for a second presidential bid.
