And the winner is...

Obama takes Iowa and the rest of the country as the polls predicted. As of right now with 96% of the vote in, Obama leads with 52% of the vote, which is 816,429 votes. Romney has 46% of the vote, which is 727,928 votes. Not too many surprises when it came to this election, but it was still close.
From the exit poll data, it shows that women account for 60% of Obama votes compared to 44% of men. Gender could have had a major part after all.

As for the house races, they also went as predicted. Redistricting pushed the 3rd District west, making it more Republican, which made the race there a close race because the 3rd District also has Des Moines, which typically votes Democrat. But the Republicans prevailed there and also in the 4th District. The 1st and 2nd districts on the eastern side of the state stayed with their Democratic incumbents making Iowa a split state in terms of representation.

Today Is The Big Day!

It's almost finally over. After all the commercials, phone calls, door knocking, and polarization, it all comes down to this. While we may not have a winner tonight, the campaigning ends today. As of today, Talking Points Memo has Obama leading by 2.3 points, well within the margin of error. To all our readers, go out and vote today!

18 Hours!

As I was browsing for the latest news on Iowa, the Des Moines Register headline on their home page jumped out: Breaking News "Final Stretch in Iowa Gives Edge to Obama." I found this interesting because of Everett's previous post on how the Des Moines Register officially endorsed Romney. What I also found extremely interesting was how right at the top, there is an ad saying "Iowa Votes For Barack Tomorrow!" paid for by Obama for America of course. Just goes to show anyone can be bought out. I even screen shot it.

For the poll itself, Obama has 47 percent while Romney has 42, for a total of five percentage points apart. Different strategists from each party are trying to weigh in the importance of winning Iowa's six electoral votes. Some say that without Iowa and Ohio, it would be hard to win and others say that Romney doesn't need Iowa to win the election. Poor Iowa.

With 18 hours left until official voting time there is still time for people to change their minds. Keep tuned!

Des Moines Register

Just the other day, the Des Moines Register officially endorsed Mitt Romney for President, who is the first Republican to receive their endorsement since Nixon in 1972. The Register also endorsed Romney for the Republican nomination ten months ago.

Register's Endorsement

So the question is, does this matter? Newspapers and journals are a dying outlet for news, as everything is transitioning to TV and the Internet. Yet at the same time, I believe this to be significant. The Des Moines Register, whether it is a hard copy or their website, is the main local news source for Iowans. Mitt Romney is the first Republican to receive their endorsement in FORTY years. While partisan voters will not change, I believe this development may sway some independent voters and those on the fence.

After all, let's not forget how the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel endorsed Gov. Scott Walker during the recall. After his endorsement, many of his ads came straight from the Sentinel. And good ol' Scottie won by a larger margin than his ACTUAL election in 2010. But I digress.

Less than a week guys! Currently Iowa is leaning Obama by 4.4%. Rock the Vote!

Romney: The Comeback Kid

Maybe the presidential debates DO mean something! After the second debate this week, most polls have Romney leading Obama. Gallup, one of the most trusted pollsters, has Romney up by 7 nation wide: 52-45. Meanwhile, ABC News/Washington Post has Romney ahead of the President 49-46.

Gallup and ABC News/Washington Post

Yet, there is still one more debate, and 18 days left until election day. Romney was leading in Iowa earlier this week, but now Obama is up by 4.2 points. The fluctuation in these polls is insane, and I am pretty sure that early voting is not taken into consideration for most of these polls. We all need to remember that in this electoral college system, the national popular vote does not mean a guaranteed win. More to come soon! (or constantly, if you are watching the polls...)

Electoral Map

It's Crunch Time!

According to WeAskAmerica, President Obama and Governor Romney are currently tied in Iowa. Many people seem to think that these debates don't do much, but there was a major shift nationally after Romney's victory in the first debate. However, it also raises the question: are the polls even accurate?

Swing State Polls

On a side not, Romney seems to be closing in on demographics that usually vote Democrat. In 2008, Obama won the "women vote" by 13 points, yet the polls say that Obama now only leads by 2 points for women in America.

The second debate is tonight from 8pm to 9:30pm central time. Let's see if this causes another shift!

Polls - Take 'em or Leave 'em

Our blog's poll asks the question, "Who will win the race in Iowa?" I can assure you that 20% of the people in Iowa will NOT vote for Jill Stein of the Green Party, so do not trust our poll. However, having Mitt Romney and Barack Obama tied is not much of a stretch, as the latest polls have Obama up by 2.4 points. Check out this link to see polls in all the swing states! This is by far my favorite source for polls and seeing how each candidate is doing in the Electoral College. 

Map of US - Polls

As of now, neither candidate has the 270 electoral votes needed to win the election. Too many states are a toss up, and some sources are even saying Romney is up by a point nationally. Romney is also leading among independents 44 to 32.

Romney in the Lead

Don't forget to watch the Vice Presidential Debate tonight!