Obama, Romney in dead heat in Missouri, poll finds
A new poll finds President Obama is virtually tied with Mitt Romney in Missouri, a state that analysts had predicted would go to Romney in November.
The poll by SurveyUSA has Romney at 46 percent and Obama at 45 percent:
Romney leads by 14 among white voters, which overcomes Obama's 10:1 advantage among black voters. Romney holds 88% of Republican votes, Obama holds 85% of Democratic votes. Independents split. Moderates break 2:1 for Obama, which keeps the contest close. Romney leads 5:3 among Evangelical voters and 3:1 among Missouri's pro-life voters. Romney leads 2:1 in Southwest MO and by 16 points in Southeast MO. Obama is bolstered by his showing in greater St. Louis, where he leads by 16. In 2008, John McCain carried Missouri by 1 tenth of 1 percentage point. In 2012, the state's 10 electoral votes are considered by some to be Romney's for the taking, but the results of this survey, 12 weeks to Election Day, suggest a tight fight.
SurveyUSA polled 720 adults from Aug. 9 through Aug. 12 and said 57% of the interviews were conducted after Romney picked Rep. Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) as his running mate. The firm cautioned that the results should not be interpreted as a reaction to the Ryan pick.
