If the presidential election was held today, Pete Buttigieg would win the popular vote over Donald Trump

Gay Democratic presidential hopeful Pete Buttigieg would beat president Donald Trump if the election was held today, according to a new poll.

The South Bend, Indiana, mayor catapulted into headlines when he announced his presidential bid, creeping up polls to stand a strong chance of becoming the country’s first openly gay leader.

Asking eligible voters the questions: “If the election were held today, for whom would you vote?”, PollingReport.com found that in a head-to-head between the two men, 46 percent of people would vote for Donald Trump while 47 percent would vote for Pete Buttigieg.

Joe Biden, Bernie Sanders and Michael Bloomberg would all also beat Trump if the US presidential election were held today, the poll found.

Pete Buttigieg also winning in polls for 2024 victory.

Another poll on January 7 also showed Buttigieg beating Trump – this time finding Buttigieg to be US voters’ top pick for president overall.

But as much as Buttigieg is barrelling towards victories in some crucial caucuses, poll participants in the Axios study declared the 37-year-old as the strongest contender to lead the Democrats.

At least, by the time he’s aged 41, as the eye-opening poll was for those people perceived as potential forerunners in the 2024 elections.

Buttigieg struck big, grabbing 30 per cent of the 1,769 people surveyed, all of whom would be described as leaning towards the Democrats.

The theoretical field of candidates vying for the top White House seat is also one not exactly white, with not a single straight, cis-gendered white man making the cut.

Most of the figures have proved to be staunch LGBT+ allies, whether through their activist works, unwavering histories as allies and voting records.

Ocasio-Cortez swept up the younger voters, leading the charge with those aged 18-29. Buttigieg, on the other hand, proved popular among the older categories.

Nestled between the lines were current big names in the 2020 race, such as Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders, who both received write-in votes.