MILWAUKEE _ Democrat Hillary Clinton boosted her lead over Republican Donald Trump in Wisconsin, according to a Marquette University Law School poll released Wednesday.
In the presidential race, Clinton held a 46 percent to 36 percent lead over Trump among registered voters. Among likely voters, Clinton's lead expanded to 52 percent to 37 percent.
In July, Clinton led Trump 43 percent to 37 percent in a head-to-head matchup among registered voters. Among likely voters, Clinton held a 4-point lead last month.
"A 15-point margin is wow," said Marquette Poll director Charles Franklin, who sought to put the numbers in perspective.
In a four-way race, the margin between Clinton and Trump changes only modestly. Among registered voters, Clinton had 42 percent, Trump 33 percent, Libertarian Gary Johnson 10 percent and Green Party candidate Jill Stein 4 percent.
Among likely voters, Clinton had 47 percent, Trump 34 percent, Johnson 9 percent and Stein 4 percent.
Trump was viewed favorably by 27 percent and unfavorably by 65 percent, not much of a change from the previous month. Clinton appeared to get a slight boost, with her favorable number ticking up to 43 percent, with 53 percent unfavorable.
Fifty-eight percent said Clinton had the qualifications to be president, while only 29 percent said Trump had those qualifications.
Ninety percent of Democrats said they'll vote for Clinton, while only 79 percent of Republicans said they'll vote for Trump.
Independents split, with 36 percent saying they'll vote for Clinton, 34 percent for Trump and 29 percent saying they don't know how they will vote.
In the race for U.S. Senate, Democrat Russ Feingold led Republican U.S. Sen. Ron Johnson 49 percent to 43 percent. Among likely voters, Feingold led Johnson by 53 percent to 42 percent.
Including Libertarian candidate Phil Anderson, Feingold had 47 percent, Johnson 38 percent and Anderson 7 percent among registered voters. Among likely voters, Feingold had 50 percent, Johnson 39 percent and Anderson 7 percent.
Johnson was viewed favorably by 34 percent and unfavorably by 32 percent, with 31 percent not having heard enough about the first-term senator to have an opinion.
Feingold had a 44 percent favorable rating, 36 percent unfavorable rating, while 18 percent have not heard enough about the former three-term senator to have an opinion.
Ninety-two percent of Democrats say they'll vote for Feingold and 87 percent of Republicans back Johnson. Among independents, 42 percent support Feingold, 44 percent support Johnson and 14 percent are undecided.
This was the first Marquette Poll conducted after both national political conventions.
Forty-five percent of those polled said the state is headed in the right direction and 51 percent said it was on the wrong track.
Thirty percent said the state budget is in better shape than it was a few years ago, 36 percent said it wasn't and 28 percent said it was about the same.
Asked what should be done to fund transportation _ a budget flash point _ 43 percent prefer to increase revenue, 33 percent would cut projects and just 12 percent support borrowing more.
A solid majority of Republicans, 55 percent, would support cutting projects, with only 25 percent in support of increasing revenue. Fifty-nine percent of Democrats prefer increasing revenue, with only 18 percent preferring to cut projects.
Republican Gov. Scott Walker's job approval remains stuck at 38 percent, with 59 percent disapproving.
House Speaker Paul Ryan, a Janesville Republican, was viewed favorably by 54 percent and unfavorably by 31 percent. Eighty-percent of Republicans statewide approve of Ryan's job performance.
President Barack Obama's job approval was 53 percent, compared with 41 percent disapproval.
The poll of 805 registered Wisconsin voters was conducted Thursday through Sunday. The full sample had a margin of error of plus or minus 4.6 percentage points. The sample for the 683 likely voters had a margin of error of plus or minus 5.0 percentage points.
Of those surveyed, 44 percent identified as Republicans and 47 percent as Democrats. Those figures included so-called "leaners," those who normally call themselves independents and lean toward a party.
