Mitt Romney Needs Ohio to Win the Election http://zite.to/RExpL3 via @zite
Newsweek
8:19 PM - 24 Oct 12 · Details
Mitt Romney Needs Ohio to Win the Election
by Mark McKinnonIt’s not just the Buckeye State. The road to the White House runs through Ohio. With only 13 days left and a slim lead for Obama, Mark McKinnon on why Mitt’s ground game matters more than ever.
Thirteen days. The final countdown. Barring an external event of significant proportion, not much will change to affect the outcome. And it’s now all a turnout game.
AFP / Getty Images ; Getty Images
Forget the national polls showing President Barack Obama and Governor Mitt Romney in a dead heat or a statistical tie in the race for the White House.
In 2012, the road to 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue runs through one state: Ohio.
According to Real Clear Politics, Romney leads Obama 206 to 201 in possible electoral votes, based on the averages of polling by state. That leaves 131 still up for grabs. Do the math. The challenger needs 64 or more, and the incumbent, 69 or more, to get to the magic number of 270. (Assuming it does not end in a tie.)
The RCP toss-up states and their electoral votes are: Colorado (9), Florida (29), Iowa (6), Michigan (16), Nevada (6), New Hampshire (4), Ohio (18), Pennsylvania (20), Virginia (13), and Wisconsin (10).
Not so coincidentally, both candidates are on a whirlwind tour visiting many of those states this week. While there are several numerical pathways to electoral victory for either man, the math is harder for Romney without Ohio.
Trite but true: As Ohio goes, so goes the nation.
Ohio has voted for the winner in every presidential election since 1964. No Republican has ever won without carrying the state; only two Democrats in the last century have won without Ohio.
George W. Bush won Ohio in 2004 by 118,601 votes. Obama won by just 262,224 votes, despite a larger share nationally.
With every vote needing to count, no wonder the president and vice president have visited the Buckeye State 10 times in the last 30 days, and have reportedly poured $57 million into broadcast ads there. Romney and Ryan have been there 21 times, spending $34 million on ads.
