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Newt Gingrich's lead in the GOP presidential race is disappearing as the former House speaker comes under heavy attack from his rivals, according to three new national polls.

Gingrich had surged to the top of the ballot in recent weeks, leading his fellow GOP candidates in several polls by double digits. But an ABC News/Washington Post poll released Tuesday finds him tied with Romney for first. They each receive 30 percent support from registered voters. The pair, though, holds a substantial lead over the rest of the field. Texas Rep. Ron Paul, who has been running negative ads against Gingrich, has 15 percent. Minnesota Rep. Michele Bachmann receives 7 percent, Texas Gov. Rick Perry has 6 percent, and former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum garners 4 percent support. Former Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman sits at the bottom of the poll with 2 percent.

Voters say by a 40 percent to 35 percent margin that Romney is more likely to win the GOP nod than is Gingrich. And by a 10-point margin, voters say Romney has the best chance of beating President Obama. However, the plurality of voters -- 35 percent -- say Gingrich is better qualified to be commander in chief of the military, while 17 percent say the same for Romney. By a 43 percent to 23 percent margin, voters choose Gingrich over Romney when asked who has the best experience to be president. However, voters find Romney to be the most honest and trustworthy of the candidates (22 percent), while 15 percent say the same of Bachmann, 14 percent for Paul and 13 percent for Gingrich. Voters trust Romney to handle the economy by a six-point margin over Gingrich. When it comes to who will best deal with the federal budget deficit, the two are tied.

A CNN/Opinion Research poll released Monday showed Gingrich's lead over Romney evaporating as well. They are tied at 28 percent while Ron Paul places third with 14 percent. Bachmann gets 8 percent, and Perry attracts 7 percent. Santorum and Huntsman round out the field at the bottom with 4 percent and 2 percent, respectively. The field is still fluid, as 56 percent of respondents say they could change their mind about which candidate they will support.

Regardless of their first choice, a plurality of voters -- 41 percent -- say Romney is most likely to score the Republican nomination. Still, voters are split over who has the best chance of defeating Obama next year: 36 percent say Romney while 35 percent pick Gingrich. In last month's CNN poll, voters were more confident in Romney over Gingrich by a 40 percent to 21 percent margin. Most voters say Romney is the strongest leader of the bunch, but they are split over who will best get the economy moving: 30 percent say Romney while 28 percent back Gingrich. 

Meanwhile, Gingrich's numbers have steadily declined in Gallup's daily tracking survey of the race. After leading by 15 points in the first installment of the poll released two weeks ago, Monday's poll showed his lead over Romney down to two points.

Gingrich announced Monday that he will launch a 44-city bus tour of Iowa ahead of the Jan. 3 caucuses to push back against the attacks from his rivals.