Last updated on February 8th, 2013 at 12:31 am
According to the Gallup Daily Tracking Poll, President Obama’s approval rating has jumped a net 10 points from 45%/48% to 52%/43% since the Democratic Convention.
Gallup found that President Obama has gone from a net (-1) with a job approval rating of 45% and job disapproval rating of 46% after the Republican convention to a net (+9). Obama’s job approval rating now stands at 52% with his disapproval rating at 43%. In contrast, Mitt Romney saw no bounce in his numbers after the Republican convention. In fact, Romney actually lost a point of support in the head to head match up with the president.
These numbers highlight both how effectively the Democratic Party was able to communicate their message to voters, and what a lackluster effort the Republican convention in Tampa really was. The really bad news for Republicans is twofold. These initial numbers hint that they have not been able to damage Obama’s personal popularity, and that the president’s optimistic message about the future resonates well with voters.
The Republicans have chosen an unlikable candidate who has decided to run an unlikable campaign. The message coming out of Tampa was something akin to we’re doomed and it’s all Obama’s fault. Mitt Romney was never able to give anyone watching or listening a reason why they should vote for him. In contrast, the Democratic convention was about the the Democratic vision for America.
Paul Ryan lectured the nation about the debt, while Joe Biden pointed at the camera and said, “never bet against the American people.” It is obvious which message is going to appeal to voters.
What the Democratic convention did was remind America that Barack Obama is still a man they can feel good about voting for. The vast majority of Americans like personally like this president and they want him to do well. If the Gallup numbers are any indication, they also enjoy hearing about the things that he has done well.
Mitt Romney asked the question are you better off than you were four years ago? After watching the Democratic convention it seems a majority of Americans may now be willing to say that they are. After his convention flopped, the base case scenario for Romney was that he would find himself in the same position that he was before, but now it is entirely possible that the challenger has lost more ground to the president.
The 2012 election is not an easy one, but it looks the Democratic convention may have been another successful step in a hard fought reelection campaign for President Obama.
Awards and Professional Memberships
Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and The American Political Science Association
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