Polls

Gallup poll: Obama’s convention bump gone, lead down to 1 point

by Jonathan Easley - 09/18/12 5:55 PM ET

President Obama’s small bounce in the polls following the Democratic National Convention has all but vanished in Tuesday’s Gallup daily tracking poll.

Obama takes 47 percent support among registered voters over Romney’s 46, according to the poll.

Obama’s lead widened to 7 points in the days following the Charlotte, N.C., convention earlier this month, but Tuesday’s data show the race returning the level where it’s been throughout most of the contest.

{mosads}Prior to the conventions, Gallup’s poll had been almost completely static, with each candidate averaging 46 percent since May.

The president’s approval rating also dipped back below 50 percent for the first time since the convention.

Forty-nine percent said they approve of the job the president is doing, compared to 45 who say they disapprove. That’s still slightly better than the last few months, when Obama hovered around break-even and occasionally dipped into negative territory.

If the race is indeed returning to equilibrium, that’s welcome news for the Romney campaign, which has endured a number of high-profile missteps in recent weeks.

Romney failed to see any sustained bump coming out of the Republican National Convention in Tampa, Fla., in late August, and last week he was on the defensive over critical comments he made about the Obama administration’s reaction to unrest in the Middle East.

The tracking poll was mostly conducted before Romney’s latest controversy, a leaked video of him saying that 47 percent of the country is “dependent upon government” and will back Obama.

Romney’s recent struggles have provoked some on his staff to anonymously criticize the campaign to news outlets, but the latest Gallup poll suggests both candidates are facing difficulties trying to gain any real traction before Election Day.

According to the Real Clear Politics average of polls, Obama has a narrow lead over Romney, 48 percent to 45.

The 2012 election still appears likely to be decided by a handful of swing states where the contest is essentially within the margin of error.