Election 2012: Florida President Florida: Romney 51%, Obama 47%
Friday, October 12, 2012
Mitt Romney has crossed the 50% mark for the first time to widen his lead to four points in Florida.
The latest Rasmussen Reports telephone survey of Likely Florida Voters finds Romney with 51% support to President Obama's 47%. Two percent (2%) remain undecided. (To see survey question wording, click here .)
This is the widest gap between the candidates in surveys this year, but Florida remains a Toss-Up in the Rasmussen Reports Electoral College Projections . Prior to these findings, the candidates have been within two points of each other in Florida in every survey since April. Last week , it was Romney 49%, Obama 47%.
Obama carried Florida over John McCain in 2008 by a 51% to 49% margin.
Ninety-six percent (96%) of likely voters in the Sunshine State say they are certain to vote in this year's election. Among these voters, it's Romney 51%, Obama 47%.
Ninety-two percent (92%) of likely Florida voters say they have already made up their minds which candidate they will vote for. Romney leads 52% to 48% among these voters.
Florida voters now trust Romney more than Obama 51% to 45% when it comes to handling the economy. The GOP challenger has a narrower 51% to 47% lead in voter trust in the area of national security. This is comparable to findings among all voters nationally .
Also in line with national findings, 44% in Florida worry that the federal government will do too much in responding to the nation's current economic problems, while 39% fear the government will not do enough. Given a choice of what the government should do in response to the economy, 69% think it should cut spending, while only 18% call for more government spending.
Twenty-four percent (24%) of Florida voters think the government spends too much on defense, while 33% say it doesn't spend enough. Thirty-eight percent (38%) feel the current level of defense spending is about right.
A plurality (48%) correctly recognizes that the United States spends more on the military and national security than any other nation in the world. Fourteen percent (14%) don't think that's true, while 39% are not sure.
The government jobs report released on Friday in which unemployment fell below 8% for the first time in three-and-a-half-years has not changed economic perceptions in Florida. Just 15% rate the U.S. economy as good or excellent, while 46% think it's in poor shape. Thirty-seven percent (37%) say the economy is getting better, but 41% believe it is getting worse.
Forty-eight percent (48%) of Florida voters approve of the job the president is doing, with 32% who Strongly Approve. Fifty-two percent (52%) disapprove of his job performance, including 45% who Strongly Disapprove.
Romney is viewed favorably by 53% of voters in the state and unfavorably by 45%. This includes 40% with a Very Favorable opinion of him and 33% with a Very Unfavorable one.
Senior citizens remain strongly supportive of Romney, while younger voters support the president just as strongly. Obama leads 54% to 38% among voters n Florida not affiliated with either of the major political parties.
Along with Florida, Colorado , Missouri , New Hampshire , Nevada , North Carolina , Ohio , Virginia and Wisconsin are Toss-Ups. Romney leads in Arizona , Indiana , Montana and North Dakota . Obama is ahead in Connecticut , Maine , Massachusetts , Michigan , New Mexico , Pennsylvania and Washington .