Poll: Romney now leads Santorum in Wisconsin, gains on Barack Obama

A new Wisconsin poll with a high margin of error makes good reading for Mitt Romney.

A week before the GOP primary in the state and Romney has taken the lead from Rick Santorum, winning an eight-point lead in a new poll released today by Marquette University Law School.

The poll also shows President Barack Obama’s lead over Romney in the state shrinking from double digits to just five percent, with 48 percent to Romney’s 43 percent.

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The results comprise the answers of 707 registered Wisconsin voters who were interviewed between Friday and Sunday and had a margin of error of 3.8 percentage points. Of those who answered, 349 said they vote in the GOP primary and this sample had a margin of error of 5.4 points.

Romney led Santorum 39 percent to 31 percent, according to an analysis of the results.

Charles Franklin, poll director at the law school, was quoted as saying that Romney’s rise reflected his wins in other states.

“In February Santorum was at the high point of his campaign following wins in Minnesota, Missouri and Colorado. Since that time Romney has come from behind to win in Michigan and Ohio, while Santorum has done well in southern states,” Franklin was quoted as saying.

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According to CNN, 42 delegates are at stake when the primary is held on April 3. Maryland and the District of Columbia also have primaries that day.

According to The New York Times, Romney has 568 delegates, just fewer than half those needed to win, while Santorum has won 273.