Colbert polling at 13 percent nationally

Comedy Central host Stephen Colbert has quickly gained traction with voters across the United States after he announced he was exploring a possible presidential run.

A recent survey (PDF) by the Democratic-affiliated Public Policy Polling (PPP) firm found that in a hypothetical race against Democratic President Barack Obama and Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney, Colbert would receive 13 percent of the vote.

According to the poll, Obama would win the election with 41 percent of the votes, and Romney would come in a close second with 38 percent.

The polling firm concluded that Colbert actually pulled most of his support from the current president.

Without Colbert on the ballot, Obama led Romney by five points, 49 to 44.

Overall, 36 percent of voters had a favorable view of Colbert, compared to 28 percent who had an unfavorable view and 36 percent who were unsure.

Colbert announced last week that he had formed a presidential exploratory committee and turned his super PAC over to Comedy Central host Jon Stewart after another PPP survey found that he had the support of 5 percent of South Carolina's Republican voters.

Because Colbert will not be able to get on the ballot before Saturday's South Carolina primary, the Stewart-controlled super PAC is urging voters to throw their support behind former Republican candidate Herman Cain.