GOP presidential candidate Mitt Romney has pulled to within 3 percentage points of President Barack Obama among likely voters in Michigan, a state once thought to be firmly in the Democrat’s camp, according to a new poll from
Detroit News/WDIV.
The tally was 48 to 45 percent. That’s a big move from the 6.7-point lead Obama enjoyed in the Detroit News poll earlier this month and is Obama’s smallest advantage during the campaign so far. The poll has a margin of error of 4 points, so Romney could actually be in the lead.
"Mitt Romney's numbers are where they would need to be if he hopes to pull off an upset next week," said Richard Czuba of Glengariff Group, which conducted the poll. "But the question is: Is there enough for a final push?"
Romney leads in terms of who respondents think would handle the economy better, 47 to 44 percent. Obama leads on the issue of who would handle foreign affairs better, 50 to 42 percent, and on the issue of who understands voters’ values better, 48 to 43 percent.
In a sign of the increased competitiveness of the race, Obama is launching his first advertisements of the campaign in the state. Restore Our Future, the super PAC supporting Romney, will spend $2.2 million in a final fusillade of ads, adding to the $7.8 million it already has devoted since the primaries.
Real Clear Politics rates the race for Michigan’s 16 electoral votes a toss-up, with the last three major polls, including this one, showing Obama with an average lead of 3 points.
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