Almost 6 in 10 Americans Say Personal Financial Situation is Important Factor in 2012 Presidential Vote; Obama and Romney Tied

NEW YORK, June 18, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- 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 by Bankrate.com (NYSE: RATE).

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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.

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.

"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."

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. Statistical results are weighted to correct known demographic discrepancies. The margin of sampling error for the complete set of weighted data is plus or minus 3.6 percentage points.

About Bankrate Inc.

Bankrate is a leading publisher, aggregator, and distributor of personal finance content on the Internet. Bankrate provides consumers with proprietary, fully researched, comprehensive, independent and objective personal finance editorial content across multiple vertical categories including mortgages, deposits, insurance, credit cards, and other categories, such as retirement, automobile loans, and taxes. The Bankrate network includes Bankrate.com, our flagship website, and other owned and operated personal finance websites, including CreditCards.com, Interest.com, Bankaholic.com, Mortgage-calc.com, CreditCardGuide.com, Nationwide Card Services, InsuranceQuotes.com, CarInsuranceQuotes.com, InsureMe, Bankrate.com.cn, CreditCards.ca, NetQuote.com, and CD.com. Bankrate aggregates rate information from over 4,800 institutions on more than 300 financial products. With coverage of nearly 600 local markets in all 50 U.S. states, Bankrate generates over 172,000 distinct rate tables capturing on average over three million pieces of information daily. Bankrate develops and provides web services to over 80 co-branded websites with online partners, including some of the most trusted and frequently visited personal finance sites on the Internet such as Yahoo!, AOL, CNBC, and Bloomberg. In addition, Bankrate licenses editorial content to over 500 newspapers on a daily basis including The Wall Street Journal, USA Today, The New York Times, The Los Angeles Times, and The Boston Globe.

www.bankrate.com

Ted Rossman
Public Relations Manager
Bankrate Inc.
[email protected]
(917) 368-8635

SOURCE Bankrate, Inc.