If The Election Were Held Today...

The thing is, it is.  That is, it's starting to be held all over the country this week with early voting opening.  Soon half the states will be voting.

If lots of people vote now (avoid the rush!) then today's polls really count.  And changes in the race from now on have to be big to swing enough votes to make a difference.

The change that's being registered in the first of today's polls is basically that things are getting worse for Romney, particularly with his core group of older voters.The Reuters/Ipsos poll  "indicates that during the past two weeks -- since just after the Democratic National Convention -- support for Romney among Americans age 60 and older has crumbled, from a 20-point lead over President Obama to less than 4 points....Romney's double-digit advantages among older voters on the issues of healthcare and Medicare -- the nation's health insurance program for those over 65 and the disabled -- also have evaporated, and Obama has begun to build an advantage in both areas."  (Hat tip to Political Wire for isolating these quotes.)

A Gallup poll of 12 swing states confirms that President Obama is trusted more to handle Medicare by a 50% to 44% margin.  Nationally on this issue President Obama leads 51%-43%.

In this respect, Andy Borowitz's comic press release seems especially appropriate:

NEW YORK (The Borowitz Report)—With just forty-three days to go until the election, Mitt Romney is in a race against time to offend the few voters he has not already alienated, his campaign manager said today.
“So far, Mitt’s efforts to make voters dislike him have gone exactly as planned,” said the campaign manager Matt Rhoades. “But let’s not kid ourselves—we’ve still got a few supporters out there and we’ve got to find ways to piss them off.”


On Sunday the TPM Electoral Scoreboard moved to Obama 313, Romney 191.