Former New Mexico Governor Gary Johnson has hit 10 per cent in another presidential poll, raising the possibility that the Libertarian candidate could have an important impact on the expected battle between Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton.

Clinton leads Trump 37 to 35 per cent in the new Morning Consult poll out Tuesday, with Johnson trailing far behind at 10 percent.

It's not all about a love of Johnson or his policies. Just a quarter of respondents said they backed Johnson because of his own views.

Seventy two per cent of respondents said they back Johnson because they don't like the other candidates, a reflection of the low approval ratings and poor trustworthiness scores that both Clinton and Trump receive.

Former New Mexico Governor Gary Johnson hopes to reach 15 per cent to make it onto the presidential debate stage

Libertarian party candidate Gary Johnson has scored 10 per cent of the vote in several national polls

Johnson, who got the libertarian party's nomination, has a different effect when he's identified as an independent than when he's called a libertarian. When he's identified as independent, he

He has room to grow: 61 per cent of voters don't even know who he is.

For Johnson to make it onto the presidential debate stage, he needs to score 15 per cent in five national polls. Getting on stage would certainly be a boon to his fundraising and would end legitimacy.

He also got 10 per cent in a similar Morning Consult poll in May, and got 10 per cent in a Fox News poll when his name was included. The Fox poll had Trump leading Clinton 42 to 39 per cent with Johnson in the race.

Johnson affects the race slightly differently depending on how he is identified. When he's called an independent, Clinton beats Trump 37 to 35. When he's called a Libertarian, Trump beats Clinton by 37 to 36.

One possibility is that Johnson, a former GOP governor, would pull from Republican Trump if his campaign gains steaem

Hillary Clinton will may get a reprieve from a rough spring when she likely wraps up her party's nomination Tuesday

The former New Mexico governor and 2012 Libertarian candidate was the top choice for 10 percent of registered voters polled June 1 through June 4. When asked what their main reason was for backing Johnson, 72 percent of his supporters said it was because they don’t like either of the other likely candidates, GOP nominee Donald Trump and Democratic front-runner Hillary Clinton.

One-fourth of the small cadre of people supporting Johnson said they support him because they share his political views. He advocates for, among other things, legalizing marijuana, eliminating the current tax code, and making it easier for Mexican citizens to obtain temporary work visas in the United States.

Johnson's running mate is former Massachusetts GOP Governor William Weld.

The poll also found that Speaker Paul Ryan's endorsement of Trump helped with Republicans, but hurt among independents, 43 per cent of whom were less likely to back Trump because of Ryan's endorsement.