Rep. Rod Blum (R-Iowa) is trailing his Democratic opponent by 5 percentage points as he heads into the homestretch of a hotly contested reelection bid, according to a poll released Sunday.

The Emerson College poll showed Iowa state Rep. Abby Finkenauer (D) receiving support from 43 percent of voters, while Blum earned 38 percent. Another 12 percent of potential voters were undecided.

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The poll comes as the House Ethics Committee announced last week that Blum is the subject of an investigation into whether he violated rules when he failed to disclose that he founded an internet marketing company during his first term in office.

Blum blasted the investigation in a statement to The Associated Press, calling it a "crusade of personal destruction" over what he has described as a "clerical error on a form.”

Finkenauer's lead falls within the poll's margin of error, which was plus or minus 6.4 percentage points.

The poll surveyed 250 people in Iowa's 1st Congressional District, and was conducted Sept. 6-8.

Blum is considered one of the most vulnerable GOP incumbent House members heading into November's elections. The Cook Political Report, a nonpartisan election forecaster, rates the race in as "lean Democratic."