Florida Vote Could Hinge on Youth, for a Change

'Anybody but Obama' not enough for crucial independents in swing states

(NEWSER) - The bruising, highly negative Republican presidential nomination fight appears to be creating a new casualty as the race moves into swing states like Colorado—independent voters, reports the Los Angeles Times . President Obama may have disappointed many voters over the past three years, but the GOP candidates' continuing bashing of each other is turning off a lot of voters even more. Independent voters "want to vote for a Republican, but they've got to like the one we nominate," said a former GOP state chairman. "It's not 'anybody but Obama.'" Independent voters are the dominant political force in Colorado—and other swing states—and appear to be warming to Obama. More»

There are plenty of reasons the president should be worried

(NEWSER) - Democrats, and many pundits, seem to believe that President Obama is rebounding, and will surely win re-election, but Jim Vandehei of Politico isn't buying it. Here's why he thinks the president should be sweating right now:

• The economy: The recent CBO report not only projected another trillion-dollar deficit, it predicted that unemployment will rise to 8.8% in the third quarter—something Obama's own advisers doubt he could recover from.

New poll shows Mitt at 38%, Newt at 29%

(NEWSER) - Mitt Romney is on a roll: After an impressive debate performance last night, he's No. 1 in Florida in a new poll. The Quinnipiac Poll has Romney with 38%, followed by Newt Gingrich with 29%, Ron Paul with 14%, and Rick Santorum with 12%. That's quite a difference from the last survey, released Wednesday, which showed Romney and Gingrich practically tied, the New York Times reports. Other recent polls had Gingrich in the lead. More»

He's statistically tied with Romney, Perry in Ohio, and close to it in Pennsylvania

(NEWSER) - Barack Obama is in for a fight in a pair of major swing states that he carried handily in 2008, according to a new Quinnipiac University poll. In both Ohio and Pennsylvania, 51% say the president doesn’t deserve another term, and 53% and 54% respectively disapprove of the job he’s doing, USA Today reports. More»

Nobody but Mitt Romney even stands a chance, Ted Strickland says

(NEWSER) - As Ohio goes, so goes the nation? Former Democratic Gov. Ted Strickland tells Politico that none of the current Republican candidates can beat President Obama in the state that has picked the winner in 25 out of the last 27 presidential elections. The only one that even stands a chance is Mitt Romney, according to Strickland, who describes the other challengers as crazies. More»