Stephen Reader
Stephen Reader covers politics for It's a Free Country, WNYC's interactive politics site. He joined the station in 2010 and has also worked for Studio 360, WNYC's Peabody Award-winning show about art, culture, and creativity.
As GOP Opens Field Offices, Romney Trailing in Most Battleground States
Monday, April 30, 2012
Republican presidential candidate and former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney speaks during a campaign event at Otterbein University April 27, 2012 in Westerville, Ohio.
(Getty)
The Republican Party will have field offices open in 12 key battleground states by mid-May. It's an infrastructure Mitt Romney will inherit when we finally stop putting "presumptive" in front of "nominee," and one he'll rely on to overcome recent polling deficits in crucial contests.
The Republican National Committee already had field offices open in Colorado, Florida, Michigan, Nevada, North Carolina and Virginia, and plans to open more in Iowa, New Hampshire, New Mexico, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin next month.
Barack Obama won all of these states in 2008. Eight of these states — Colorado, Florida, Iowa, North Carolina, New Mexico, Nevada, Ohio and Virginia — are ones that George W. Bush won in 2004.
The Obama campaign already has offices open in all 12 states. Micah Cohen at FiveThirtyEight notes that Obama "has a substantial head start in organizing a general election get-out-the-vote operation, particularly in the number of field offices he has established."
So far, most polls conducted in these states reflect that fact.
Colorado
Most Recent Poll: Obama 53 — 40 Romney (Public Policy Polling, 04/10/2012)
RealClearPolitics Average: N/A, but Obama led all four Public Policy Polling surveys conducted since the beginning of 2011.
Electoral College Votes: 9
Florida
Most Recent Poll: Obama 45 — 46 Romney (Rasmussen Reports, 04/27/2012)
RealClearPolitics Average: Obama +3.3
Electoral College Votes: 27
Iowa
Most Recent Poll: Obama 44 — 46 Romney (Des Moines Register, 02/15/2012)
RealClearPolitics Average: Obama +3.0
Electoral College Votes: 7
Michigan
Most Recent Poll: Obama 47 — 43 Romney (EPIC-MRA, 04/03/2012)
RealClearPolitics Average: Obama +11.3
Electoral College Votes: 17
Nevada
Most Recent Poll: Obama 51 — 43 Romney (Public Policy Polling, 04/04/2012)
RealClearPolitics Average: Obama +6.7
Electoral College Votes: 5
New Hampshire
Most Recent Poll: Obama 51 — 42 Romney (WMUR / UNH Granite State Poll, 04/23/2012)
RealClearPolitics Average: Obama +3.5
Electoral College Votes: 4
New Mexico
Most Recent Poll: Obama 54 — 40 Romney (Public Policy Polling, 04/25/2012)
RealClearPolitics Average: N/A, but Obama with strong lead in PPP and Rasmussen surveys since beginning of 2011.
Electoral College Votes: 5
North Carolina
Most Recent Poll: Obama 44 — 46 Romney (Rasmussen Reports, 04/13/2012)
RealClearPolitics Average: N/A
Electoral College Votes: 15
Ohio
Most Recent Poll: Obama 46 — 42 Romney (Rasmussen Reports, 04/20/2012)
RealClearPolitics Average: Obama +5.3
Electoral College Votes: 20
Pennsylvania
Most Recent Poll: Obama 45 — 42 Romney (Quinnipiac, 03/28/2012)
RealClearPolitics Average: Obama +6.0
Electoral College Votes: 21
Virginia
Most Recent Poll: Obama 44 — 45 Romney (Rasmussen Reports, 04/25/2012)
RealClearPolitics Average: Obama +0.7
Electoral College Votes: 13
Wisconsin
Most Recent Poll: Obama 52 — 41 Romney (Rasmussen Reports, 03/29/2012)
RealClearPolitics Average: Obama +11.8
Electoral College Votes: 10
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Comments [1]
I wonder how close the race if electoral votes was spilt by house seats
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