The Hill News

Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney and businessman Herman Cain are at a near-perfect tie for the Republican presidential nomination among Republican voters, according to a new poll.

On Monday Gallup released a new poll that found that 20 percent of Republican voters want Romney to win the nomination, while 18 percent want Cain to win the nomination. Texas Gov. Rick Perry, who has been considered Romney's top contender since he entered the race, has the support of 15 percent of Republican voters. No other candidate in the Republican presidential field earned double digits, according to the poll.

Gallup's findings fall in line with a number of recent polls that found that Cain, previously considered a long-shot candidate, has been gaining steam in the Republican presidential primary and could now be a serious contender for the nomination.

Earlier on Wednesday The Washington Post released a poll that found Romney leading the field among Republican voters with 24 percent, followed by Cain at 16 percent and Perry at 14 percent.

In a recent interview Romney was asked what he thought Cain's preferences were.

"Herman Cain's a good man and I respect him. I'm not going to look at his vulnerabilities. I'm going to talk about the things I need to do to make sure that my message is clear to the American people," Romney said Friday on Fox ! News.