Nbadan
11-01-2004, 03:58 AM
Sen. John Kerry has taken a slender lead over President Bush in Iowa as the 2004 presidential race nears the finish line.
The Des Moines Register's Iowa Poll shows 48 percent of Iowans likely to vote in Tuesday's election, or who have already voted by absentee ballot, support the Democratic candidate and 45 percent back the Republican incumbent. The poll's margin of error is 3.5 percentage points.
Six percent of likely voters remain undecided in the new Iowa Poll. With the race still close, they could play a pivotal role in determining which candidate wins the seven electoral votes from Iowa, viewed as a battleground state that either could carry. In other elections, undecided voters have tended to side with the challenger, which would be good news for Kerry.
Adding another element of suspense are the 5 percent of Bush supporters and the 4 percent of Kerry supporters who say they could still change their minds.
The poll, taken Monday through Friday night, shows the Massachusetts senator has gotten a jump on the president among those Iowans who have cast absentee or early ballots - a major get-out-the-vote strategy of both parties.
Twenty-seven percent of Iowa adults surveyed said they had already voted. Kerry leads Bush, 52 percent to 41 percent, among that group of early-bird voters. Among the 73 percent who said they definitely would vote on Tuesday, Kerry and Bush are tied.
Poll participant William "Bat" Masterson, a retired law enforcement officer from Council Bluffs, said he cast his absentee ballot for Kerry. "I'm hoping that Kerry can settle this thing in Iraq," said Masterson, a 76-year-old Democrat. "Too many innocent people are getting killed. Maybe it wasn't a necessary war."
Bush continues to be dogged by relatively low job approval ratings, which traditionally are a sign of trouble for the incumbent's re-election bid. Among likely voters, 47 percent disapprove of the president's overall job performance, and 45 percent approve.
Another red flag for the president is that a majority of Iowans have taken a pessimistic view of how things are going in the nation: Fifty-five percent say the country has gotten off on the wrong track; 39 percent say it's headed in the right direction.
The poll also contains some encouraging news for Bush. More likely voters regard him as a strong leader and a likable person than they do the Massachusetts senator. Also, more of them think Bush would do a better job than Kerry in handling the anti-terrorism fight and the Iraq situation.
Bush supporter Kaylene Robison, a cable television dispatcher from Des Moines, said her chief concern is the nation's security and she'd feel safer with Bush's continued leadership.
"I feel more secure having President Bush another four years," said Robison, 32, a political independent who voted for Ralph Nader four years ago. While she likes Kerry's positions on health care and abortion, "he just seems to flip back and forth on different issues, and that does concern me."
The Iowa Poll shows just 1 percent of likely voters say they are casting their ballots for independent candidate Nader in Tuesday's election.
Desmoines Register (http://desmoinesregister.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20041030/NEWS09/41030009/1001)
The Des Moines Register's Iowa Poll shows 48 percent of Iowans likely to vote in Tuesday's election, or who have already voted by absentee ballot, support the Democratic candidate and 45 percent back the Republican incumbent. The poll's margin of error is 3.5 percentage points.
Six percent of likely voters remain undecided in the new Iowa Poll. With the race still close, they could play a pivotal role in determining which candidate wins the seven electoral votes from Iowa, viewed as a battleground state that either could carry. In other elections, undecided voters have tended to side with the challenger, which would be good news for Kerry.
Adding another element of suspense are the 5 percent of Bush supporters and the 4 percent of Kerry supporters who say they could still change their minds.
The poll, taken Monday through Friday night, shows the Massachusetts senator has gotten a jump on the president among those Iowans who have cast absentee or early ballots - a major get-out-the-vote strategy of both parties.
Twenty-seven percent of Iowa adults surveyed said they had already voted. Kerry leads Bush, 52 percent to 41 percent, among that group of early-bird voters. Among the 73 percent who said they definitely would vote on Tuesday, Kerry and Bush are tied.
Poll participant William "Bat" Masterson, a retired law enforcement officer from Council Bluffs, said he cast his absentee ballot for Kerry. "I'm hoping that Kerry can settle this thing in Iraq," said Masterson, a 76-year-old Democrat. "Too many innocent people are getting killed. Maybe it wasn't a necessary war."
Bush continues to be dogged by relatively low job approval ratings, which traditionally are a sign of trouble for the incumbent's re-election bid. Among likely voters, 47 percent disapprove of the president's overall job performance, and 45 percent approve.
Another red flag for the president is that a majority of Iowans have taken a pessimistic view of how things are going in the nation: Fifty-five percent say the country has gotten off on the wrong track; 39 percent say it's headed in the right direction.
The poll also contains some encouraging news for Bush. More likely voters regard him as a strong leader and a likable person than they do the Massachusetts senator. Also, more of them think Bush would do a better job than Kerry in handling the anti-terrorism fight and the Iraq situation.
Bush supporter Kaylene Robison, a cable television dispatcher from Des Moines, said her chief concern is the nation's security and she'd feel safer with Bush's continued leadership.
"I feel more secure having President Bush another four years," said Robison, 32, a political independent who voted for Ralph Nader four years ago. While she likes Kerry's positions on health care and abortion, "he just seems to flip back and forth on different issues, and that does concern me."
The Iowa Poll shows just 1 percent of likely voters say they are casting their ballots for independent candidate Nader in Tuesday's election.
Desmoines Register (http://desmoinesregister.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20041030/NEWS09/41030009/1001)