Poll: Bush, Trump rising for GOP, but both trail Clinton

PHOTO: JIM WATSON/AFP/Bill Pugliano/Getty Images

Now playing

01:22

Poll: Clinton with growing lead against any Republican

electioneering explainer danny cevallos orig_00001425.jpg

Now playing

01:13

States can actually limit free speech on Election Day

U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) speaks during a campaign rally with democratic presidential nominee former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton at University of New Hampshire on September 28, 2016 in Durham, New Hampshire.

PHOTO: Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

Now playing

03:00

Remembering the campaigns we lost

PHOTO: Getty Images

Now playing

02:10

They made it to the White House despite scandals

history of the october surprise foreman ac pkg_00005811.jpg

PHOTO: Getty Images

Now playing

02:14

The history of the October surprise

Now playing

04:02

36 years of election nights on CNN

Now playing

01:15

Watch 10 elections get called on CNN in one minute

hillary clinton rally daytona beach fbi investigation sot_00002801.jpg

PHOTO: CNN

Now playing

00:57

Clinton calls FBI director's actions unprecedented

trump voter id podesta fact check origwx bw_00004624.jpg

Now playing

02:16

Fact check: Trump on undocumented immigrants and voting

hillary clinton rally time lapse origwx bw_00004417.jpg

Now playing

01:21

Hillary Clinton's historic night in time-lapse

NEW YORK, NY - JULY 23: Anthony Weiner, a leading candidate for New York City mayor, stands with his wife Huma Abedin during a press conference on July 23, 2013 in New York City. Weiner addressed news of new allegations that he engaged in lewd online conversations with a woman after he resigned from Congress for similar previous incidents. (Photo by John Moore/Getty Images)

PHOTO: John Moore/Getty Images North America/Getty Images

Now playing

02:01

Clinton's history with Anthony Weiner

Many North Carolina voters remain undecided in upcoming presidential election_00001405.jpg

PHOTO: CNN

Now playing

02:15

Some North Carolina voters hesitant to pick a candidate

joe biden hillary clinton election intv sot smerconish _00000000.jpg

PHOTO: CNN

Now playing

00:46

Biden: I thought I could beat Hillary Clinton

cnnee pkg rodriguez clinton global iniciative hillary emails_00002301.jpg

Now playing

02:47

Hillary Clinton's explanations of her email saga

PHOTO: The Guardian

Now playing

01:17

Gary Johnson snaps at reporter

Democratic Presidential candidate Hillary Clinton and US Vice President Joe Biden acknowledge the crowd at Riverfront Sports athletic facility on August 15, 2016 in Scranton, Pennsylvania.

PHOTO: Mark Makela/Getty Images North America

Now playing

01:26

Biden on Clinton's Secretary of State list?

Story highlights

Jeb Bush and Donald Trump continue to lead the GOP primary in a national CNN/ORC poll

Hillary Clinton leads the Democrats

Clinton also leads all GOP candidates in head-to-head general election match-ups

(CNN) —

With nearly all of the expected 2016 presidential candidates formally in the race, a new CNN/ORC national poll finds two recent entrants to the GOP field on the rise, while Hillary Clinton maintains her position atop the Democratic field, though holding a slightly slimmer lead.

Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush and businessman Donald Trump top the list of GOP presidential contenders following their back-to-back campaign launches in mid-June, and are the only two Republican candidates holding double-digit support among Republicans and Republican-leaning independents.

For his part, Trump specifically responded to the poll results Wednesday afternoon saying the numbers are “representative of the response we are receiving from all over the country.”

“I am committed to addressing the issues our country is facing and am confident my business mindset and common sense solutions are resonating with the American people,” Trump said in a statement Wednesday afternoon. “Politicians are all talk and no action and the American public is ready for a leader with a proven track record of success.”

READ: The complete CNN/ORC poll here

Clinton, though, continues to lead all GOP candidates in head-to-head general election match-ups.

Republicans

Bush stands at 19%, up from 13% in May – and his best showing in CNN/ORC polling since December. Trump follows at 12%, up from 3% before his announcement. Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee (8%), neurosurgeon Ben Carson (7%) and Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul (7%) round out the top five.

Notably absent from this top five – though statistically speaking not far behind – are Florida Sen. Marco Rubio (6%, down from 14% in May) and Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker (6%, down slightly from 10%). Both had been top five candidates in each of the last two CNN/ORC polls, and Walker had been in the top five since February.

The poll, conducted just before New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie formally launched his campaign with a rally in Livingston, New Jersey, on Tuesday, also finds that Christie begins his push for the presidency with just 3% support.

The findings suggest Bush is making progress toward being seen as the frontrunner in a field that has long lacked a clear leader. He holds a significant lead over the second-place candidate Trump, is seen as the candidate who could best handle illegal immigration and social issues, and runs about even with Trump and well ahead of the other candidates when Republicans are asked which candidate can best handle the economy.

Photos: Potential 2016 presidential candidates

Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush has said his decision to run for the Republican nomination will be based on two things: his family and whether he can lift America's spirit. His father and brother are former Presidents.

PHOTO: Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images

Photos: Potential 2016 presidential candidates

Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker has created a political committee that will help him travel and raise money while he considers a 2016 bid. Additionally, billionaire businessman David Koch said in a private gathering in Manhattan this month that he wants Walker to be the next president, but he doesn't plan to back anyone in the primaries.

PHOTO: Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

Photos: Potential 2016 presidential candidates

Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal is establishing a committee to formally explore a White House bid. "If I run, my candidacy will be based on the idea that the American people are ready to try a dramatically different direction," he said in a news release provided to CNN on Monday, May 18.

PHOTO: Justin Sullivan/Getty Images/File

Photos: Potential 2016 presidential candidates

Sen. Bernie Sanders, an independent from Vermont who caucuses with Democrats, has said the United States needs a "political revolution" of working-class Americans looking to take back control of the government from billionaires. He first announced the run in an email to supporters early on the morning of Thursday, April 30.

PHOTO: J. Scott Applewhite/AP

Photos: Potential 2016 presidential candidates

On March 2, retired neurosurgeon Ben Carson announced the launch of an exploratory committee. The move will allow him to raise money that could eventually be transferred to an official presidential campaign and indicates he is on track with stated plans to formally announce a bid in May.

PHOTO: NICHOLAS KAMM/AFP/Getty Images

Photos: Potential 2016 presidential candidates

South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham has said he'll make a decision about a presidential run sometime soon. A potential bid could focus on Graham's foreign policy stance.

PHOTO: Scott Olson/Getty Images

Photos: Potential 2016 presidential candidates

Hillary Clinton launched her presidential bid Sunday, April 12, through a video message on social media. She continues to be considered the overwhelming front-runner among possible 2016 Democratic presidential candidates.

PHOTO: Sean Gardner/Getty Images

Photos: Potential 2016 presidential candidates

Sen. Marco Rubio announced his bid for the 2016 presidency on Monday, April 13, a day after Hillary Clinton, with a rally in Florida. He's a Republican rising star from Florida who swept into office in 2010 on the back of tea party fervor. But his support of comprehensive immigration reform, which passed the Senate but has stalled in the House, has led some in his party to sour on his prospects.

PHOTO: Andrew Burton/Getty Images

Photos: Potential 2016 presidential candidates

Lincoln Chafee, a Republican-turned-independent-turned-Democrat former governor and senator of Rhode Island, said he's running for president on Thursday, April 16, as a Democrat, but his spokeswoman said the campaign is still in the presidential exploratory committee stages.

PHOTO: Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

Photos: Potential 2016 presidential candidates

Jim Webb, the former Democratic senator from Virginia, is entertaining a 2016 presidential run. In January, he told NPR that his party has not focused on white, working-class voters in past elections.

PHOTO: Steve Helber/

Photos: Potential 2016 presidential candidates

Vice President Joe Biden has twice before made unsuccessful bids for the Oval Office -- in 1988 and 2008. A former senator known for his foreign policy and national security expertise, Biden made the rounds on the morning shows recently and said he thinks he'd "make a good President."

PHOTO: BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/AFP/Getty Images

Photos: Potential 2016 presidential candidates

New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie has started a series of town halls in New Hampshire to test the presidential waters, becoming more comfortable talking about national issues and staking out positions on hot topic debates.

PHOTO: Jeff Zelevansky/Getty Images

Photos: Potential 2016 presidential candidates

Rep. Paul Ryan, a former 2012 vice presidential candidate and fiscally conservative budget hawk, says he's keeping his "options open" for a possible presidential run but is not focused on it.

PHOTO: BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/AFP/Getty Images

Photos: Potential 2016 presidential candidates

Sen. Rand Paul officially announced his presidential bid on Tuesday, April 7, at a rally in Louisville, Kentucky. The tea party favorite probably will have to address previous controversies that include comments on civil rights, a plagiarism allegation and his assertion that the top NSA official lied to Congress about surveillance.

PHOTO: Andrew Burton/Getty Images

Photos: Potential 2016 presidential candidates

Texas Sen. Ted Cruz announced his 2016 presidential bid on Monday, March 23, in a speech at Liberty University. The first-term Republican and tea party darling is considered a gifted orator and smart politician. He is best known in the Senate for his marathon filibuster over defunding Obamacare.

PHOTO: Andrew Burton/Getty Images

Photos: Potential 2016 presidential candidates

Democrat Martin O'Malley, the former Maryland governor, released a "buzzy" political video in November 2013 in tandem with visits to New Hampshire. He also headlined a Democratic Party event in South Carolina, which holds the first Southern primary.

PHOTO: Ethan Miller/Getty Images

Photos: Potential 2016 presidential candidates

Republican Rick Perry, the former Texas governor, announced in 2013 that he would not be seeking re-election, leading to speculation that he might mount a second White House bid.

PHOTO: Stewart F. House/Getty Images

Photos: Potential 2016 presidential candidates

Former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum, a social conservative, gave Mitt Romney his toughest challenge in the nomination fight last time out and has made trips recently to early voting states, including Iowa and South Carolina.

PHOTO: Mark Wilson/Getty Images

Photos: Potential 2016 presidential candidates

Political observers expect New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo to yield to Hillary Clinton's run in 2016, fearing there wouldn't be room in the race for two Democrats from the Empire State.

PHOTO: Spencer Platt/Getty Images

But there are sticking points for Bush. He fares slightly worse across all three issues tested when only registered voters are considered. Registered voters tend to be more conservative and older than Republicans as a whole, and are more apt to actually vote when the primaries come around.

Looking at how each candidate fares among those subgroups, conservatives split their support between Bush and Trump, 12% back each. Likewise, among voters age 50 or older, 14% support Bush and 14% back Trump. By contrast, among Republicans under age 50, Bush is the only candidate in double-digits with 23%, Trump has just 9% support. And moderate or liberal Republicans back Bush over Trump 27% to 10%.

Trump’s competitiveness among those older and more conservative Republicans also helps explain Walker’s and Rubio’s declines. In April, 16% of Republicans age 50 or older backed Rubio, 14% Walker. Now, Rubio has just 6% among this group and Walker has 7%. Trump grew from 2% in May to 14% now.

Among conservatives in May, Rubio led the field with 15%, Walker was just behind at 14%. Bush had 11%, about the same as in the current poll. Now, Walker has fallen to 8%, and Rubio is down five points to 10%. And Trump has grown from 2% to 12%. Rubio also lost ground among moderate or liberal Republicans, just 1% back Rubio in the new poll, down from 11%.

Democrats

On the Democratic side, Hillary Clinton continues to hold all the cards. Nationally, she leads all other candidates by more than 40 points, with 57% of Democrats and Democratic-leaning independents behind her, 16% backing Vice President Joe Biden, 14% Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, 2% Jim Webb and 1% or less for former Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley and former Rhode Island Gov. Lincoln Chafee.

The poll holds better news for Biden than it does for Sanders, who has made gains against Clinton in recent polling in Iowa and New Hampshire. But Biden actually tops the list as national Democrats’ second-choice candidate, 35% say he’s their second pick, compared with 14% who say Sanders is.