Romney Rises in Favorability; Obama’s Pushback is Intensity

ABC News ^ | 11-4

[Arthurio]

After lagging for months at historic lows, Mitt Romney’s personal popularity has advanced in the final weekend to its highest of the 2012 campaign, rivaling Barack Obama’s. But Obama pushes back with greater enthusiasm among his supporters – and the race itself remains a tie.

Fifty-four percent of likely voters in the latest ABC News/Washington Post tracking poll express a favorable opinion of Obama overall, the most basic measure of a public figure’s popularity. Yet 53 percent now see Romney favorably – a majority, remarkably, for the first time.

It’s a dramatic gain for Romney, who emerged from the Republican primaries as the least popular major party candidate in polling back to 1984 and remained there up to the debates. Just 40 percent saw him favorably as recently as late August, and it was essentially no better, 44 percent, after the party conventions.

The presidential debates clearly helped him: Sixty-two percent of likely voters describe Romney’s performance in the debates as a factor in their vote, and those who do so are a broad 23 points more likely to see him favorably overall, 61 percent vs. 38 percent. Substantially fewer cite Obama’s handling of the response to Hurricane Sandy as a factor in their vote, 49 percent.

[Windflier]

Remembering the FReeper lack of enthusiasm for Mitt...it’s heartening to see how conservatives are rallying around Romney to defeat Obama.

That's really something, isn't it? The man's name was practically verboten on this site for so long. Folks like me wouldn't have crossed the street to spit on him, yet here I am, very excited about the prospect of him becoming our next president.

One writer said it well yesterday; 'After the first debate, Republicans finally had a reason to vote FOR Romney, and not just AGAINST Obama.'

I'll admit, that was the turning point for me. He sold me on his sincere desire to do what's best for our country. In that debate, he finally became a three dimensional person in my eyes, and convinced me that he's someone I can trust.

Now, I'm still not ready to set my expectations too high for him. I'll be happy if he simply keeps his campaign promises, and governs within the constraints of the Constitution. That'd be a 1,000x improvement over what we've had these last four years.

[rabidralph]

When they say "enthusiasm," they mean thuggery.