Poll shows President Obama in dead heat with Perry, Romney

Americans are virtually divided over which party they wish to see control both the White House and Congress as a product of the 2012 elections.

A new Quinnipiac University poll released Wednesday found President Obama in a statistical tie with the two Republican candidates he seems most likely to face next fall, Texas Gov. Rick Perry and former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney.

{mosads}Obama and Romney each would win 45 percent of the vote if the election were held today, according to the survey of registered voters.

Obama performs slightly better against Perry; the president would best the Texan, 45 percent to 42 percent.

The race for Congress is similarly divided. The poll found registered voters split, at 38 percent apiece, over whether they prefer to see Republicans or Democrats control the House starting in January 2013.

The Quinnipiac survey is also the third national poll in a week showing that Perry has rocketed to the front of the field of GOP presidential hopefuls.

Twenty-four percent of Republicans said they favored Perry, followed by Romney at 18 percent, former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin at 11 percent and Rep. Michele Bachmann (Minn.) at 10 percent.

The poll, conducted Aug. 16-27, has a 1.9 percent margin of error for the national sample, and a 2.9 percent margin of error for the GOP primary sample.

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