Latest Presidential Polls: Even Rasmussen Says Obama Retains National Lead Despite Debate

Impact

At close of business Friday, Obama is still leading in the latest national polls conducted by Rasmussen Reports and Gallup. Both polls were released today and were initially reported by the conservative newspaper The Washington Examiner.

Rasmussen’s Reports Daily Presidential tracking poll based on a 3-day rolling average, has Obama leading Romney 49% to 47% in the daily nationals. The Gallup 7-day tracking poll has the Obama lead ticking up 1 point over Romney. Obama is now leading Romney 50% to 45%.

Obama received more good news from Rasmussen. In the latest Daily Swing State Tracking poll, Obama is leading Romney 51% to 45% collectively across 11 battleground states. The states included in the collective survey are Colorado, Florida, Iowa, Michigan, Nevada, New Hampshire, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Virginia and Wisconsin.

Rasmussen said that Obama has exceeded 50% in its battleground state poll for five consecutive days, the best it has recorded for either candidate. Obama has led Romney in the Rasmussen poll for 7 consecutive surveys and 14 of the last 16 surveys.

Despite its reputation for accuracy, Rasmussen has been accused during this election of over sampling and favoring Republicans. It is the “house” polling company for the ultra-conservative Fox News. The Obama campaign has to be encouraged by the results of the Rasmussen Daily Swing States poll.

Reuters/Ipsos released their poll on Friday and it is the first national poll to show that Romney may receive a bump from the debates. The online tracking poll conducted between Monday and Friday showed Obama had lost 4 points on his lead over Romney. Forty six percent of likely voters backed Obama, versus 44% for Romney.

The Hill reported that new polls show Obama maintaining his lead amongst Hispanic voters in battleground states. Obama leads Romney by 78% to 17% with Nevada's Hispanic voters and in Florida Obama leads Romney by a 30-point margin, at 61% to 31%. The non-partisan group Latino Decisions conducted the polls.

Real Clear Politics has Obama leading Romney by 3.2 points after adding in the latest Rasmussen results. Obama leads Romney 49.3% to 46.1% in national average polls, however the battleground states have shifted again. Ohio is back to battleground status reflecting the positive response from Romney’s debate performance and his immediate campaign visit after the debates.