Mitt Romney carves out slim lead over President Barack Obama in national polls

Politico and George Washington University released data Monday morning that shows Romney leading Barack Obama, 48-47, in a national poll conducted between April 29 and May 3.

"(It's) a number well within the margin of error, as Republicans rapidly consolidate behind the likely GOP nominee," James Hohmann summarized for Politico. "The former Massachusetts governor has opened up a 10-point lead, 48 percent to 38 percent, among independents … and a 6-point lead among those who describe themselves as 'extremely likely' to vote in November. Obama led Romney by 9 points overall in Politico's February poll."

The new Politico/George Washington University results mirror the latest daily tracking polls from Rasmussen Reports (Romney 47, Obama 46) and Gallup Politics (Romney 46, Obama 45).

Last week several polls showed the two candidates tied. "It simply cannot be any closer," the Deseret News' Eric Schulzke wrote Wednesday. "Three polls at the beginning of the week show a direct dead heat with the same numbers: 46 percent each. Pundits often talk of statistical dead heats, but rarely do you have multiple polls reporting an identical tie."