Presidential Race Still Tight

There’s been little movement in the presidential horse race in the past two months according to a Monmouth University poll released early this afternoon. The pick of Paul Ryan as the presumptive GOP vice presidential nominee gets generally positive reviews, but hasn’t made much initial impact on U.S. voter intentions.

In the race for the White House, registered voters across America give a slight edge to the incumbent, with 45% saying they intend to support President Barack Obama in this year’s election compared to 41% for Mitt Romney. The advantage narrows to 46% – 45% among American voters who are considered the most likely to vote at this time. 

In June, Obama’s lead was 46% to 42% among registered voters and 47% to 46% among likely voters.  Independent voters are split – 40% for Romney to 37% for Obama. Obama claims 87% support among Democrats and Romney has 87% of the Republican vote.

Romney’s pick for the GOP vice presidential nomination, Wisconsin Congressman Paul Ryan, receives more positive than negative reviews, especially when compared to the man he hopes to replace. Currently, 31% of American voters have a favorable view of Ryan and 27% have an unfavorable one, while 42% have no opinion. The negative numbers for incumbent Vice President Joe Biden are higher, earning a 30% favorable rating to a 35% unfavorable one, with 35% having no opinion.

Patrick Murray, director of the New Jersey-based Monmouth University Polling Institute says, “None of the candidates for the nation’s two highest offices waltzes into this race with stellar ratings, but Paul Ryan is generally seen as a solid pick for vice president.”

The survey was conducted by telephone with 1,375 registered voters in the United States from August 15 to 19, 2012.  This sample has a margin of error of + 2.7 percent. The poll was conducted by the Monmouth University Polling Institute in West Long Branch, New Jersey.