Rasmussen Reports is pleased to announce that it will be including poll averages from FiveThirtyEight.com in its Balance of Power Calculator.

FiveThirtyEight.com has developed a model for averaging state-by-state polls based upon the timing of the poll, the reliability of the polling firm, and other factors. The site’s name comes from the total number of Electoral College votes available to the Presidential candidates. Rasmussen Reports will aggregate the FiveThirtyEight.com averages and other data to provide a comprehensive assessment of the state-by-state race for the White House.

Scott Rasmussen, President of Rasmussen Reports, noted that “Nate Silver and fivethirtyeight.com are a great example of how the online community is improving election coverage. His quantitative approach is a welcome addition to the debate and a valuable resource for any serious electoral analyst or armchair campaign manager.”

Silver said, “I’m thrilled to be working with Rasmussen Reports in this endeavor. In addition to being one of the most active and reliable pollsters, Scott and his team have made every effort to consider other sources of information in order to provide their readers with the most comprehensive electoral picture possible”.

The FiveThirtyEight.com averages will be featured along with new polling data released this week by Rasmussen Reports (methodology).

In addition to the FiveThirtyEight.com average, data inputs for the Balance of Power Calculator include the latest Rasmussen Reports poll in a state, an average of the latest polling from other firms, Rasmussen Markets data, Intrade market data, the aggregated rankings of selected analysts, the state’s voting history, and national trends. The weight given to each variable varies over time (i.e.—polls will be counted more heavily in October than today, a state’s history will be counted more heavily today than in October).

Currently, the Balance of Power Calculator shows Barack Obama ahead in states with 200 Electoral College votes and John McCain leads in states with 189. When “leaners” are added, Obama leads 260-240.