More Republicans now think Democrat Hillary Clinton will win the presidency than Donald Trump, as their party's candidate struggles with difficulties including allegations of sexual misconduct and his suggestion he may not honor the outcome of the election.
A Reuters/Ipsos poll released on Wednesday and conducted from October 20 to October 24 found that 41 per cent of Republicans expected Clinton to win the November 8 election, versus 40 per cent who picked Trump.
That reflected a sharp decline in confidence from last month, when 58 per cent of Republicans said they thought their party's nominee would win, versus 23 per cent who expected Clinton to prevail.
Among Trump's supporters, 49 per cent in the latest poll said they believed Trump would win, down from 67 per cent who felt that way at the beginning of the month.
"There's still hope, I guess. I just don't have a great deal of faith in a good portion of the American public," said Bert Horsley, 38, of Belgrade, Montana, who said he planned to vote for Trump even though he believed Clinton would win.
Horsley said he felt the country was leaning increasingly socialist and that voters were more inclined to focus on Trump's problems than on issues facing Clinton, including allegations she mishandled classified emails while secretary of state.
"The nation's willing to overlook certain things in some people and not in others," he said.
Democrats appear to be strongly anticipating a Clinton presidency. Some 83 per cent of Democrats said in the poll they thought she would win, while only 8 per cent predicted Trump would become president.
