Hillary Clinton now beating Donald Trump 46% to 41% in newest poll

Hillary Clinton is beating Donald Trump 46% to 41% among likely US voters in a new poll.

Among all registered voters, the margin is greater: a breezy 10% gap with 45% for Clinton to 35% for Trump according to the ABC News/Washington Post poll conducted 5-8 September.

The survey found 9% of likely voters back Libertarian candidate Gary Johnson and 2% support the Green Party's Jill Stein.

Either voters are going through serious whipsaw changes or some polls will prove to be significantly less accurate than others. A CNN/ORC survey just a week earlier (1-4 September) found Trump was running 2% ahead of Clinton, 45% to 43% in a four-way race.

But while Clinton is winning in the latest poll, the Washington Post notes that Trump has been closing the gap with Clinton, and the slightly lower numbers for Clinton among likely voters may indicate that support for the Democratic candidate is beginning to flag. The race appears to be tightening nationally as well as in key battleground states.

Lagging interest among some supporters poses a "potential turnout challenge" for Democrats with less than nine weeks before Election Day, notes the Post.

Nevertheless, it's Trump who "still appears to have the more challenging route to victory," the newspaper concludes.

Whoever wins, it's clear voters aren't thrilled with either candidate.

More than six out of 10 voters surveyed said that neither candidate is honest or trustworthy, according to the poll. The majority were critical of Clinton's ethics as secretary of state as well as Trump's qualifications and his behavior toward women and minorities.

Almost two out of every three voters disapprove of Trump's explanation of his policy for handling undocumented immigrants, while nearly six in 10 say Clinton granted special favours to donors of the Clinton Foundation.

Those surveyed appear to be voting against a candidate, rather than for their choice. Fewer than half of Trump's supporters — 46% — say they are "very enthusiastic" about his candidacy, while only 33% of Clinton's supporters said that about their candidate.

Among those polled, seven in 10 voters say they have "definitely" decided who they will vote for; three out of 10 have not.

Right now, either candidate is close enough to win four key swing states this election: usually Republican Arizona and Georgia, and Democratic-tilting Nevada and New Hampshire, according to four new NBC News/Wall Street Journal/Marist polls.

In Nevada, which went for Barack Obama in 2008 and 2012, Clinton is up over Trump by a single point, 45% to 44%, but she's ahead 46% to 41% among the larger group of all registered voters.

In New Hampshire, which Obama also won twice, Clinton leads Trump 42% to 41% among likely voters; they're tied at 40% each among all registered voters.

In Arizona, which the GOP has carried in every presidential election since 2000, Trump leads Clinton among likely voters by one point: 42% to 41%. Among all registered voters, it's Clinton over Trump 41% to 40%.

Trump is ahead three points (46% to 43%) among likely voters in Georgia, which Republicans have carried since 1996. The candidates are tied at 44% each among registered voters.

"As we enter the final lap of this very unconventional election, it would not be surprising if the electoral map in the end has new contours," said Lee Miringoff, director of the Marist College Institute for Public Opinion.

"Any of these four states could awaken a fault line in what is looking more and more like a shake-up election with more states being up for grabs."

Hillary Clinton appeared to be running away with the election as early as July, and there was talk among some Republicans of forcing Trump to step aside.

But in the wake of constant news about the emails Clinton kept on a private server as she worked as secretary of state and a less-than-impressive showing on a televised national defence forum, the outcome is far less certain.