SALT LAKE CITY — Utahns apparently are warming up to Donald Trump.

The presumptive Republican presidential nominee now leads Democrats Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders in a new public opinion poll released by UtahPolicy.com on Monday.

Trump leads Clinton 43 percent to 30 percent, with 26 percent undecided, according to 588 registered Utah voters Dan Jones & Associates surveyed May 2-10. It has a 4 percent margin of error.

Trump bests Sanders 43-37 percent, with 20 percent undecided, the poll shows.

In March, a poll showed Utah would vote for a Democrat for president for the first time in 52 years.

But now that Trump has forced fellow Republicans Ted Cruz and John Kasich out of the race, and influential party leaders are backing the presumptive GOP nominee, Utahns appear to be falling in line.

"I think the reason that they lined up for Hillary before or Bernie was because of what Mitt Romney did to Mr. Trump," Jones said, referring to a scathing speech the 2012 GOP presidential nominee made about Trump in March.

While Romney has not let up on his denunciation of Trump, other Republicans, including Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, say the will do what they can to help the billionaire businessman win in November.

"Orrin Hatch is very powerful in Washington, D.C., he really is, and very respected. When he speaks out, it has impact, and it sometimes filters on down in Utah," Jones said.

Still, Jones points out the poll results don't mean Utahns would turn out to vote.

A Deseret News/KSL poll conducted by Jones in March found Utah voters would reject Trump in a race against either Clinton or Sanders.

While Democratic front-runner Clinton was only slightly ahead of Trump — 38 percent to 36 percent — Sanders, a self-declared Democratic socialist, held a substantial lead — 48 percent to 37 percent — over Trump among likely Utah voters.

The March poll also showed a surprising number of Utahns who said they wouldn't vote if Trump were on the ballot. Sixteen percent said they'd skip the election if Trump and Clinton were ballot choices, while 9 percent said they wouldn't vote in a Trump-Sanders matchup.

At the end of the day, Utah is a solid Republican state that won't go for a Democratic president or skip the election, said Utah Republican Party Chairman James Evans.

Utahns, he said, will support the Republican choice because that is much better than any Democrat.

"A Republicans not voting is essentially a vote for Hillary," he said. "I think Republicans will reconcile themselves to that reality and step up and do the right thing."

Utah Democratic Party Chairman Peter Corroon acknowledges Utah is a very Republican state, but he said the latest poll shows that Utahns are still uncomfortable with Trump.

"While Trump may reflect the Republican Party nationwide, I don't think he reflects the values of Utahns," Corroon said.

Jones said things could still change in the months leading to the November election.

"Mr. Trump can get in an awful lot of trouble. Also, Hillary could be indicted. I don't think that'll happen, but that's a possibility," he said.

Related

Poll: Utah would vote for a Democrat for president over Trump

If Donald Trump becomes the Republican Party's nominee, Utahns would vote for a Democrat for president in November for the first time in more than 50 years, according to a new Deseret News/KSL poll.

Utahns' presidential tastes have been a moving target.

Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush was the choice last July, a Jones poll for UtahPolicy.com showed. But by September, allegiance had shifted to Ben Carson, according to another Jones/UtahPolicy.com survey. This past March, Cruz won the Utah GOP presidential preference caucus, with Trump finishing a distant third.

Jones said the new poll results surprised him but added, “I've had a lot surprises this election."

Contributing: Ladd Egan

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