Donald Trump pulled ahead of Hillary Clinton, in a battle between the two likely presidential nominees, a poll showed Wednesday night.
The Manhattan real estate tycoon led the former secretary of state 45 percent to 42 percent,according to the Fox News Channel survey.
The poll of 1,021 registered voters was taken between Saturday and Tuesday, with a margin of error of plus or minus 3.5 percentage points.
Both candidates scored big with their own parties – Trump up 82 percent to 7 percent among GOP voters and Clinton ahead 83 percent to 6 percent among Democrats.
Trump pulled ahead thanks to support among independents, 46 percent to 30 percent over Clinton.
Trump also had a bigger lead with men, than Clinton had with women. Men went for Trump by a margin of 55 percent to 33 percent, while women favored Clinton by 50 percent to 36 percent, the polled showed.
The likely GOP candidate’s edge comes despite a 53-percent unfavorable rating for the Republican Party as opposed to 40 percent favorable, pollsters said. The Democratic Party was also under water, but by a closer margin of 49 percent unfavorable and 47 percent favorable.
Clinton still hasn’t been able to shake challenger Bernie Sanders, who has vowed to campaign all the way to the Democratic National Convention.
The former socialist mayor of Burlington, Vermont, has reminded voters that various polls have shown him as a stronger candidate against Trump – and this FNC survey was no different.
While Clinton was 3 points down to Trump, Sanders leads the Republican 46 percent to 42 percent in a hypothetical November showdown, the poll found.