Poll: Carson, Trump neck and neck in Pennsylvania

Ben Carson and Donald Trump are neck and neck in the battle for Pennsylvania’s 2016 GOP presidential primary voters, a new poll says.

Trump edges out Carson by 1 percentage point in the Keystone State, according to the latest Public Policy Polling (PPP) sampling released Tuesday.

{mosads}Trump leads the GOP presidential race in the state with 24 percent support. Carson closely trails the outspoken billionaire at 23 percent.

Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) and former Hewlett-Packard CEO Carly Fiorina follow them at 9 percent apiece.

Former Gov. Jeb Bush (R-Fla.) and Gov. Chris Christie (R-N.J.) are next with 7 percent each.

Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) then earns 6 percent, making him the last Republican White House hopeful polling above 3 percent in Tuesday’s survey.

Pennsylvania’s Republican primary voters also prefer Carson to Trump when left with only those two options.

Tuesday’s poll found that 52 percent would pick Carson versus 38 percent who would back Trump. Another 10 percent said they were unsure, PPP added.

Carson also remains the most popular second choice of the entire GOP presidential field in Pennsylvania. About 20 percent would support the retired neurosurgeon if their first option were unavailable.

Trump, in contrast, gets only 9 percent voter support among the same group.

Former Sen. Rick Santorum (Pa.), meanwhile, fares badly among his former constituents in the Keystone State. Just 2 percent back his presidential campaign.

Additionally, 64 percent believe Santorum should abandon his Oval Office bid, versus 23 percent who hope he continues.

PPP surveyed 479 Republican primary voters from Oct. 8 to Oct. 11 via landline phone and Internet polling. It has a 4.5 percent margin of error.