Latest Presidential Polls: Ohio Up For Grabs as Romney Camp Disputes Time Magazine Obama Lead

Impact

With less than two week before Election Day, and a plurality of polls showing and increasingly tight race in swing states and at the national level, the Romney campaign has issued a memo disputing the results of a recent Time magazine poll that shows President Obama leading his Republican challenger by 5 points in the decisive battleground state of Ohio. 

Though the survey says Obama leads Romney by 5 points, the number was reached averaging early voters and those who intend to vote on November 6. Among the former, the president has an advantage of 2 to 1 (60% to 30%); while among the latter, Romney and the president are tied at 45% -- according to the Time survey.

Furthermore, the poll shows former Governor Romney leading the president among the states' independents by a 15-point margin, 53% to 38%, a number even the Romney campaign says "it's not possible" as "if Mitt Romney wins independent voters by 15 points in Ohio, he’ll be the next President of the United States.” 

So Rich Beeson and Scott Jennings, the Romney campaign’s national and Ohio field directors, released a memo disputing the results of the Time magazine poll since they claim the survey has a 9-point Democratic registration edge — while during the 2008 presidential election, the Ohioan electorate favored the Democrats by 8 points.

Such charge mirrors a previous complaint by the Republican challenger's campaigns when prior to the October 3 first presidential debate President Obama led Mitt Romney by large margins nationwide and in several of the critical swing sates that'll decide the election. "Democrats are oversampled," was the Republicans' cry at the moment. Similarly, the Obama campaign has been equally eager to dismiss the polls now that Romney seems to be gaining momentum. 

It is easy to understand how Ohio creates anxiety between both campaigns. With the race getting tied across geographical zones and demographic groups, the Buckeye State is likely to be the deal breaker and any slim advantage either candidate has — whether it's real or embellished — can move the needle one way or the other by fulfilling each camp's prophecy. 

So far, both candidates have ammunition to keep pushing their respective narratives. Obama can boast about his early voting advantage as well as OFA's supposedly epic ground game in the Buckeye State. As for Romney, he'll continue to push the narrative of his supposed surge while trying to convey a sense of momentum as he bids himself as "the candidate of change."

See the full memo from the Romney campaign below:

October 25 Ohio State of the Race Memo