WDIV-TV and The Detroit News Exclusive Poll: Democratic Gains Erased in Race for White House

DETROIT, Oct. 10, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- A new exclusive WDIV Local 4 and The Detroit News poll reveals that President Barack Obama now holds a 6.7% lead over Mitt Romney among likely voters in the Michigan General Election, 49.0% to 42.3%  (+/- 4.0%)   7.7% of voters are still undecided.

The results of this new poll show that all of the gains made by Democrats in September have vanished post-debate.  A WDIV Local 4 post-convention survey in September had revealed a 14.0% lead for Obama at 52.0% to 38.0%.  (+/- 4.0%)  Among female voters, Obama has dropped to a 9-point lead over Romney at 50.0% to 41.0%. 

"In one night, Mitt Romney wiped away all the gains that the Democrats made since their September convention to return the race almost exactly back to where it was before the convention," said Richard Czuba, president of the Glengariff Group, Inc. and pollster for Local 4 News.  "The key question now is can Mitt Romney continue to ride the momentum of the debate and make Michigan a state that is up for grabs on Election Day, or does President Barack Obama put a halt on his gains.  Suburban women seem to be the most volatile voting bloc of this election.  We saw them swing to Barack Obama in September to give him a wide double digit lead among women, but about half of that lead has disappeared after the debate."

The poll results also show that it now appears to be Senator Debbie Stabenow's race to lose for the U.S. Senate, who holds a 12-point lead over Republican challenger Pete Hoekstra at 50.1% to 37.5%.

WDIV will release additional information from the exclusive poll during Local 4 News, including an in-depth look at the race for the United States Senate and the several proposals set to be on the General Election ballot.  The complete poll results will be posted online at www.ClickOnDetroit.com.        

The WDIV Local 4 and The Detroit News exclusive poll was conducted by Glengariff Group, Inc. using a 600-person sample of registered Michigan voters who are likely to vote in the Michigan General Election on November 6, 2012.   80% of the live operator telephone survey were contacted via land-line, and 20% of respondents were contacted via cell phone.  The survey has a margin of error of +/- 4.0% with a 95% level of confidence.

About Post-Newsweek Stations

Post-Newsweek Stations is owned by The Washington Post Company (NYSE: WPO), a diversified education and media company.  Post-Newsweek Stations owns and operates six television stations:  WDIV, the NBC affiliate in Detroit; KPRC, the NBC affiliate in Houston; WPLG, the ABC affiliate in Miami; WKMG, the CBS affiliate in Orlando; KSAT, the ABC affiliate in San Antonio; and WJXT, an independent in Jacksonville.   Post-Newsweek also has ownership interests in LATV Networks and Internet Broadcasting (IB).

SOURCE WDIV-TV