POLITICAL EYE BLOG: Poll shows Obama leading Romney in Nevada

President Barack Obama is leading GOP presidential challenger Mitt Romney among likely Nevada voters, 50 percent to 46 percent, according to a new poll.

The survey also showed Republican U.S. Sen. Dean Heller edging out Democratic Senate challenger U.S. Rep. Shelley Berkley 45 percent to 42 percent.

The results are similar to previous polling in the two races, showing Obama generally leading Romney in the battleground state and Heller having a slight lead over Berkley in one of the closest Senate contests in the nation. Both races are expected to remain tight through the Nov. 6 general election.

The new poll was commissioned by Americans For Prosperity, a conservative group that plans Thursday to launch a bus tour in Las Vegas aimed at defeating Berkley, a seven-term congresswoman who has supported most of Obama's policies, including the stimulus, industry bailouts and the controversial health care law. The Las Vegas Review-Journal obtained the results the day before the group planned to release the survey.

The poll was conducted by Magellan Strategies, a respected Republican polling outfit. The poll used land lines and cell phones. It was taken on Monday and Tuesday of 665 registered voters who said they were likely to cast general election ballots. The poll had a margin of error of plus or minus 3.8 percentage points.

The survey found that Obama is slightly more popular than Romney among Nevada voters. Fifty percent of those polled had a favorable opinion of Obama compared with 47 percent unfavorable. Romney's favorable/unfavorable ratings were 47/46 percent.

Heller was far more popular than Berkley, according to the survey, with more people not liking the Las Vegas-area congresswoman than liking her.

Berkley's favorable/unfavorable ratings were 37/45 percent. Heller's favorable/unfavorable ratings were 48/30 percent.

While few Nevada voters were undecided in the presidential race -- only 4 percent -- many residents remain undecided on whether to vote for Heller or Berkley. Some 13 percent of those polled said they hadn't yet made up their minds in the Senate race with more than three months left before Election Day.

Among those supporting Heller, 39 percent said they would definitely vote for him and 6 percent said probably.

Berkley's support was softer with 34 percent saying they would definitely vote for her and 8 percent saying probably.

Those surveyed reflected Nevada's electorate with 16 percent identifying themselves as Hispanic, which roughly matches the 2010 and 2008 Latino turnout.

Forty-two percent were Democrats, 36 percent Republican and 22 percent independent, which tracks with the Nevada electorate.