Obama or Romney: Choose Your President
Nearly 6 in 10 Americans (59 percent) report that their personal financial situation is either the single most important factor (12 percent) or one of several important factors (47 percent) in deciding which presidential candidate they will vote for in November, according to new research released today, June 18, by Bankrate.com (NYSE: RATE).
It says Americans are evenly divided with respect to which candidate they think will be best for their personal financial situation. Twenty-one percent support President Barack Obama, and an equal 21 percent support Republican challenger Mitt Romney. Fifty percent don’t think it will make much difference either way, and 8 percent either don’t know or refused to answer.
[ Also Read: How Technology is Entering the American Political Arena ]Franklin Roosevelt (in 1940) was the last sitting president to win reelection with unemployment above 7.2 percent. The latest figure reported by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (June 1, 2012) was 8.2 percent, down from a peak of 10 percent in October 2009.
[ Also Read: Is India’s Prime Minister Really Corrupt? ]“How Americans feel about the U.S. economy and their own finances will be central to the election on Nov. 6,” said Claes Bell of Bankrate.com.
“While unemployment will probably be above that 7.2 percent historical benchmark when the election takes place, the key question will be whether Americans are comfortable with the progress that has been made since the economy took a turn for the worse. Close to 3 million jobs have been recovered since October 2009, and Bankrate.com’s Financial Security Index hit an 18-month high last month, but some recent indicators have been less positive. At this point, the election seems too close to call.”
[ Also Read: Republican Convention Selects Google as Tech Partner ]The new survey was conducted by Princeton Survey Research Associates International (PSRAI) and can be seen in its entirety here: http://www.bankrate.com/finance/economics/personal-finances-2012-election.aspx.
The PSRAI June 2012 Omnibus Week 1 obtained telephone interviews with a nationally representative sample of 1,000 adults living in the continental United States. Telephone interviews were conducted by landline (600) and cellphone (400, including 194 without a landline phone). Interviews were done in English by Princeton Data Source from June 7-10, 2012.
Bankrate is a leading publisher, aggregator, and distributor of personal finance content on the Internet.
[ RMN News Service comments: Although we have published the above information as a flat news item, it’s ridiculous to draw any inferences from a tiny sample of 1,000 respondents in a country (U.S.) of over 300 million people and where nearly half of them are potential voters. So, you can choose to ignore such survey findings. ]Photo courtesy: Bankrate.com
