Mitt Romney erased a 5-point deficit to tie President Barack Obama in the period after last week’s first debate, according to Gallup’s tracking poll.
Among registered voters surveyed in the three days immediately following the Oct. 3 debate in Denver, Obama and Romney each earn the support of 47 percent. In the pre-debate tracking period — Sept. 30-Oct. 2 — Obama held a solid lead over his Republican challenger, 50 percent to 45 percent.
An additional poll by Gallup also shows that the public overwhelmingly identifies Romney as the winner of the opening debate: 72 percent of debate watchers gave the edge to Romney, compared with only 20 percent who said Obama did a better job. According to the poll, conducted Oct. 4-5, approximately two out of three Americans said they watched the debate.
The 52-point win for Romney in the debate is the largest that Gallup has ever found in its post-debate polling, topping former President Bill Clinton’s 42-point win following the town hall debate in 1992.
