Hillary Clinton 2016: Odds Of Presidential Nomination Growing Longer As Support Falls Apart

Hillary Clinton was once seen as a shoe-in for the 2016 Democratic presidential nomination, but now it appears that support for the former Secretary of State is wavering.

Polls once showed Clinton dominating potential primary opponents in 2016, but a new poll from ABC News and the Washington Post found that just 61 percent of Democratic voters now say they plan to vote for Clinton.

The poll shows that the once-solid support for Clinton is falling apart rapidly. The same poll last month found that 65 percent of Democratic voters were planning to back Clinton, and in June it was 69 percent.

The good news for Hillary Clinton is that there is still no one single candidate standing apart as a challenger. The second-highest registering candidate was Vice President Joe Biden with 14 percent of the vote. Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren, a favorite among the more left-leaning voters, has seen her support rise, but still only sits at 13 percent.

The poll noted the following.

“Warren’s been described as the darling of liberals, and indeed her support among liberals has gained 11 points since June, while Clinton’s has slipped in this group by 14 points. Nonetheless, Clinton still holds a wide 59-19 percent lead over Warren among liberals, with 12 percent for Biden. (Narrow it down to ‘very’ liberals, combining the last two ABC/Post polls for an adequate sample size, and it’s similar – Clinton 63 percent, Warren 21, Biden 6.)”

But Elizabeth Warren has been steadfast in denying that she wants to run for president, and insiders believe it is not just talk. She wields considerable power in the Senate, and sources say she does not want to risk her stature with what could be a failed bid.

Hillary Clinton may have also received a boost this week, thanks to a landmark deal that re-establishes economic relations between the United States and Cuba. During her stint as Secretary of State, Clinton had pushed for a normalization of relations between the countries, and the deal is seen as largely thanks to her work.

“Despite good intentions, our decades-long policy of isolation has only strengthened the Castro regime’s grip on power. As I have said, the best way to bring change to Cuba is to expose its people to the values, information, and material comforts of the outside world,” Clinton said.

“The goal of increased U.S. engagement in the days and years ahead should be to encourage real and lasting reforms for the Cuban people. And the other nations of the Americas should join us in this effort,” Clinton added.

Several polls have found that the Mitt Romney is the most likely Republic candidate to face Hillary Clinton in 2016.