Poll: Portman running away with Ohio Senate race

A new poll shows Ohio Sen. Rob Portman (R) widening his lead over former Gov. Ted Strickland (D) in the race to defend his seat.

{mosads}According to a Bloomberg Politics poll released Wednesday, Portman leads Strickland by an impressive 17 points, 53 percent to 36 percent, among likely voters.

The poll reports that a part of Portman’s large lead can be attributed to his appeal among independents and Democrats. 

Nearly 20 percent of Ohio Democrats who said that they would vote for presidential nominee Hillary Clinton over Donald Trump also said that they will vote for Portman in a split-ticket ballot. 

Among independents, Portman leads his opponent by a ratio of more than 2 to 1.

Democratic groups and Strickland’s campaign have begun to cancel ad buys in Ohio as the race increasingly seems out reach.

Bloomberg Politics surveyed a pool of 802 likely voters between Sept. 9-12. The poll’s margin of error is 3.5 percent.