President Obama is leading Mitt Romney in the two biggest swing states following his well-received handling of Hurricane Sandy, according to polls from Florida and Ohio conducted by NBC News/The Wall Street Journal/Marist.
Among likely voters, Obama leads Romney 49 percent to 47 percent in Florida and 51 percent to 45 percent in Ohio. The president's 2-percentage-point lead in Florida falls within that sample’s margin of error, while the 6-point lead in Ohio is large enough to be statistically significant.
These most recent results are similar to the previous NBC News/Wall Street Journal/Marist polls conducted in those states in early October. Obama has gained a point in Florida, while the results in Ohio remain unchanged.
In both states, about seven of 10 registered voters, including slim majorities of Republicans, approve of Obama’s handling of Hurricane Sandy, with only very small minorities signaling disapproval.
But while the Obama campaign is considered to have the edge in the hard-to-measure ground game in swing states, the polls show Romney with an enthusiasm edge.
Among likely voters in Florida, 81 percent of Romney supporters expressed a high level of enthusiasm, compared with 75 percent of Obama supporters. In Ohio, 74 percent of likely Romney voters described themselves as highly enthusiastic, compared with 70 percent of Obama voters.
The Florida poll was conducted Oct. 30-Nov. 1 and carries a margin of error for likely voters of plus or minus 2.5 percentage points. The Ohio poll was conducted Oct. 31-Nov. 1 and carries a margin of error for likely voters of plus or minus 3.1 percentage points.
Get the latest news and analysis delivered to your inbox. Sign up for National Journal's morning alert, Wake-Up Call, and afternoon newsletter, The Edge. Subscribe here.
Leave A Comment