During the month of September, the number of people seeing President Bush as politically conservative dropped from 66% at the beginning of the month to 60% today. There was also a slight increase in the percentage seeing the President as politically moderate.

John Kerry's numbers moved away from the center. Fifty percent (50%) of voters now see the Massachusetts Senator as politically liberal. That's the highest level all year and up from 46% from our survey early in the month.

Perhaps more troubling for the Senator is that just 22% of liberal voters believe the Democratic nominee is one of them. The people who view Kerry as liberal are primarily conservative and moderate voters.

For President Bush, 58% of conservative voters believe he shares their ideological perspective. That's down from 66% earlier in the month.

The shift in perceptions may be the result of Senator Kerry's new position on the War with Iraq. Earlier in the campaign, perceptions of Kerry's ideology remained essentially constant during both parties' nominating conventions.

A related survey shows that voters now see a clear choice between Bush and Kerry on the issue of Iraq. Most voters identify more with what they see as Bush's priority.