President Obama holds a 46 percent to 42 percent lead over former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney in a Quinnipiac University national poll released Thursday, even as voters give the Republican a slight edge on the economy and jobs and a bigger lead on gas prices.
The president has a 10-point edge with women voters, 49 percent to 39 percent. But Mr. Romney is viewed as better on a number of pocketbook issues that both sides agree could be critical come November.
The survey showed 47 percent of voters gave Mr. Romney the edge in handling the economy while 43 percent said Mr. Obama would be better. And it found a 3 percentage-point advantage for Mr. Romney on creating jobs, and a 13 percentage-point lead on gas prices.
Asked specifically about his handling of the economy, voters disapproved of Mr. Obama’s job performance 56 percent to 38 percent.
“Republican Romney seems to hold an edge on the economy — the top issue of the campaign — and holds his own against the incumbent on being a strong leader,” said Peter A. Brown, assistant director of the Quinnipiac University Polling Institute.
But Mr. Obama led 46-40 on foreign policy and dominated in personality questions: 81 percent of voters surveyed thought the president was likable, compared to 63 percent for Mr. Romney; and Mr. Obama held a 57-44 lead over Mr. Romney when it came to caring about voters’ needs.
