Hillary Clinton now only leads Bernie Sanders by 7 points nationally

Hillary leads Bernie by 7 points in latest poll.

(Image credit: GEOFF ROBINS/AFP/Getty Images)

last updated 8 March 2016

Hillary Clinton still leads Sen. Bernie Sanders nationally in a new ABC News/Washington Post poll out Tuesday, but by the smallest margin ever recorded by the poll since the beginning of campaign season. Clinton is now a mere 7 points ahead of Sanders, 49 percent to 42 percent, among likely Democratic voters. The Hill notes that this is also the first time that Clinton has dropped below 50 percent among likely Democratic voters in the survey.

In January, Clinton led by 19 points. Last July, back when the ABC News/Washington Post poll was first starting to survey voters, Clinton led by a whopping 52 points, 68 percent to 16 percent.