Monday, October 27, 2008

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After John McCain pulled even in Florida a week ago, Barack Obama is back on top this week.

The latest Fox News/Rasmussen Reports telephone survey in the state finds Obama with 51% of the vote while McCain gets support from 47%.

This is the fourth time in five weeks that Obama has held a single digit lead over McCain. Last week was the exception with McCain up by a single point.

McCain is viewed favorably by 57% of the state’s voters, Obama by 55%.

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Fifty-three percent (53%) of Florida voters say that the economy is the most important issue of Election 2008. Fifty-two percent (52%) trust Obama more on this issue while 46% trust McCain.

In terms of the candidates, 38% say they’re most interested in someone who can bring about the needed change. Twenty-three percent (23%) say they’re looking for someone with the right experience and 20% are looking for a candidate who shares their values. Democrats are most concerned about someone who can bring about change while Republicans are more concerned with a candidate who has the right experience.

Florida has been carried by the Republican presidential candidates in eight out of the last 10 elections, most notably in 2000 when it took a month to determine that George W. Bush was the winner. In 2004, Bush easily defeated Democrat John Kerry 52% to 47%. The closeness of the 2000 race, however, has given Florida the reputation of being a so-called swing state.

Rasmussen Markets data currently gives Obama a % chance of winning Florida’s 27 Electoral College votes this year. With release of this poll, Florida shifts from “Toss-Up to “Leans Democratic” in the Rasmussen Reports Balance of Power Calculator. NOTE: Factors other than the latest Rasmussen Reports poll impact the Balance of Power ratings.

Rasmussen Reports and Fox News Channel also have jointly released several other battleground state polls today, including numbers from Ohio, Colorado, Missouri, North Carolina and Virginia. See an overview of this week’s Battleground State polls.

Rasmussen Reports earlier released new results from Arizona and California.

Electoral College projections now show Obama leading 260-163. When “leaners” are included, Obama leads 286-174. A total of 270 Electoral Votes are needed to win the White House Predict how many Electoral College votes Obama will win this year).

Recent statewide presidential polls have been released for Arizona, California, Colorado, Delaware, Georgia, Hawaii, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia and Wisconsin. Demographic crosstabs for all state polling are available for Premium Members. Learn More.

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See survey questions and toplines. Crosstabs available for Premium Members only.