Giuliani Pulls Ahead Of Hillary Clinton In New Poll

Former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani looks like he’s making lots of headway with the GOP base and if you look at this new Rasmussen poll:

After being virtually tied with Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton for several months, Republican contender Rudy Giuliani now leads Clinton up 47% to 40% in the latest Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey.

In the match-up of the frontrunners, this result marks a significant shift. For the last three months the two frontrunners have never been further apart than three percentage points. Last month, Giuliani and Clinton were separated by just a single point.

And the poll suggests that for now, at least, Giuliani would be a stronger GOP candidate than candidate-in-waiting former Senator Fred Thompson:

Senator Clinton fares modestly better against former Senator Fred Thompson. Clinton now has a three point edge over him, 46% to 43%. All four previous Clinton-Thomas have also been toss-ups.
Giuliani had been undergoing a slide in the Rasmussen polls, but no more:

The slide in Mayor Giuliani’s favorable rating seems to have bottomed out for now. After hitting a low of 50% favorable for two weeks in a row, he’s now viewed favorably by 52%. Thompson is viewed favorably by 43%, bringing him back up to where he was in late July.

In contrast, Clinton’s favorable numbers have dropped a bit. She is now viewed favorably by 45%. That’s the first time all year her ratings have dipped below the 47% mark. Clinton’s unfavorables have always been high and are currently at 52%.

But Rasmussen notes that Clinton is still the Democrats’ “default” candidate — and that Giuliani’s political fortunes hinge on what happens once Thompson enters the race.