Obama and Mitt Romney in dead heat: Poll

Washington: In yet another indication that the November US presidential election is headed for a very close finish, a latest opinion poll has said the incumbent President Barack Obama and his Republican challenger Mitt Romney are virtually tied at the moment. This is because neither Obama nor Romney have a clear advantage on issue number one — the economy, the CNN said. [caption id=“attachment_329863” align=“alignleft” width=“380” caption=“Reuters”]  [/caption] According to the CNN / ORC International survey, 49 percent of registered voters say that if the November election were held today, they would vote for Obama, while 46 percent say they would cast a ballot for Romney. Obama’s three point margin is within the survey’s sampling error. Obama had a nine point advantage in CNN’s last national poll, which was conducted in early April. “Which candidate better understands how the economy works? That’s a tie as well – 45 percent pick Obama, 45 percent choose Romney,” CNN’s polling director Keating Holland said. According to RealClearPolitics.Com, which keeps tracks of all major national polls, Obama is ahead of Romney by just 2.5 points, which comes within the margin of error. Meanwhile, US media said that yesterday’s gloomy employment news portends trouble for Obama and a wider opening for Romney. “The weak employment report on Friday held the potential to reshape the presidential campaign, members of both parties said, lifting Mitt Romney’s efforts to make the race all about President Obama’s handling of the economy and making it harder for Democrats to break through in their efforts to define Mr Romney on their terms,” The New York Times said. PTI