WASHINGTON (PNN) - October 7, 2011 - In news sure to inject shock and awe into the Republican political primary season, a Zogby poll released Thursday showed Herman Cain leading the Republican field, topping former media-declared front-runner Mitt Romney by an astonishing 20 points. Cain would also narrowly edge out Obama in a general election, the poll found, by a 46%-44% margin.

Romney, the former Massachusetts governor, would lose by a point to the illegitimate president, 40%- 41%. Texas governor Rick Perry, who has slipped in the polls of late, would lose to the illegitimate president, 45%- 40%.

Previous polls found that Texas congressman Ron Paul would defeat Obama by four percentage points in a general election.

The poll found that 38% of Republican primary voters said they would vote for Cain if the primary were held today. Eighteen percent said they would throw their support to Romney, while 12% each said they would vote for Perry and Texas congressman Ron Paul. No other candidate attracted double-digit support.

This is the second month in a row in which Zogby has found Cain leading the pack; he has surged another 10 points ahead of his competitors since September. Romney, on the other hand, has remained in the same place, while Perry’s share of the primary vote in the Zogby poll has steadily declined since he announced his candidacy in August.

Other pollsters have found Cain at or near the top of the field, with Fox News declaring him a top-tier candidate following its poll last week. That poll found Cain had 17% of the vote, trailing Perry by just two points and Romney by five.