Barack Obama has pulled ahead to his biggest lead yet over John McCain in Florida. The latest Fox News/Rasmussen Reports survey of the state finds the Democrat ahead 52% to 45%.
Last week, the race was tied at 47%. Just one week prior, McCain had a five percentage point lead.
McCain is viewed favorably by 56% of voters and unfavorably by 43%. Obama’s ratings are 54% favorable, 43% unfavorable.
As for which candidate voters trust more, both men earn 47% support. Obama edges out McCain 51% to 46% on handling the economy and jobs, while McCain has a 51% to 44% advantage on national security and the war on terrorism.
The latest poll shows Obama dominating his opponent among unaffiliated voters in the state, 59% to 32%. McCain leads 54% to 43% among white voters in Florida, while Obama has a 67% to 33% lead among Hispanic voters (Premium Members can view full demographic crosstabs.)
Rasmussen Markets data currently gives Obama a % chance of winning Florida’s 27 Electoral College votes in November.
While over a third (34%) of Florida voters say they would be extremely comfortable with Obama as president, just 27% say that of McCain. However, more voters (41%) say they would not be at all comfortable with Obama in the White House than McCain (37%).
Florida voters are much more comfortable with Joe Biden than Sarah Palin for the Vice Presidency. While 38% say they would be extremely comfortable with Biden in office, 29% say that about Palin. Nearly half of voters (46%) say they would not be comfortable at all with Palin as VP, while just 28% say that about Biden.
Voters say they would choose McCain for advice for life’s toughest decision by a 48% to 47% margin.
Governor Charlie Crist earns good or excellent ratings from 51% of voters. Just 13% say the governor is doing a poor job.
President Bush’s job is rated good or excellent by 31% of voters in Florida, while 55% give his job performance a poor rating.
New polling was released Monday night with statewide results from Colorado,Florida, Missouri, Ohio, and Virginia. See an overview of all five state polls and the latest Electoral College projections. A total of 270 Electoral Votes are needed to win the White House (see 50-State Summary).
See results from recent polling on Senate races.
See survey questions and toplines. Crosstabs available for Premium Members only.
|
McCain (R) |
50% |
49% |
|
Obama (D) |
49% |
49% |
This telephone survey of 1,000 Likely Voters was conducted by Rasmussen Reports October 5, 2008. The margin of sampling error for the survey is +/- 3 percentage points with a 95% level of confidence.
See Methodology.
|
Florida Trends: McCain vs. Obama |
||
|---|---|---|
|
Date |
McCain |
Obama |
|
11/02/2008 |
50% |
49% |
|
47% |
51% |
|
|
49% |
48% |
|
|
46% |
51% |
|
|
47% |
50% |
|
|
45% |
52% |
|
|
47% |
47% |
|
|
48% |
47% |
|
|
51% |
46% |
|
|
49% |
44% |
|
|
48% |
48% |
|
|
46% |
43% |
|
|
45% |
46% |
|
|
48% |
41% |
|
|
47% |
39% |
|
|
50% |
40% |
|
|
53% |
38% |
|
|
47% |
43% |
|
|
53% |
37% |
|
|
Favorable Ratings for Presidential Candidates in Florida |
||
|---|---|---|
|
McCain |
Obama |
|
|
Very Favorable |
38% |
43% |
|
Somewhat Favorable |
22% |
9% |
|
Somewhat Unfavorable |
19% |
12% |
|
Very Unfavorable |
20% |
36% |
|
Not Sure |
1% |
1% |
|
Rasmussen Reports - Electoral College Balance of Power Summary |
|
|---|---|
|
160 |
|
|
260 |
|
|
118 |
|
Rasmussen Reports is an electronic publishing firm specializing in the collection, publication, and distribution of public opinion polling information.
The Rasmussen Reports ElectionEdge™ Premium Service for Election 2008 offers the most comprehensive public opinion coverage ever provided for a Presidential election.
Scott Rasmussen, president of Rasmussen Reports, has been an independent pollster for more than a decade.
