Will Mitt Romney's post-debate bounce last?
Romney erases President Obama's lead, but over the next four weeks the GOP nominee will have to work hard to keep the momentum going

A flurry of new polls indicate that Mitt Romney got a lift from his strong debate performance last week, pulling roughly even with President Obama nationwide. Romney also appears to have chipped away at or eliminated Obama's lead in several critical swing states, including Florida, Virginia, and Ohio. Gallup's latest seven-day tracking poll, for example, showed Obama leading Romney 50 percent to 45 percent among registered voters in the three days leading up to last week's televised clash; afterward, they were deadlocked at 47 percent apiece. Will Romney's post-debate bounce be fleeting, or has it fundamentally altered the race?
Romney has turned things around: Mitt's "commanding debate performance" didn't just obliterate Obama's polling lead, says Andrew Malcolm at Investor's Business Daily, it also significantly improved his image. Before the debate, 44 percent of voters viewed Romney positively while 51 viewed him negatively. Afterwards, the numbers were 49 percent positive and 48 percent negative. Romney also got a "significant post-debate surge in voter enthusiasm," perhaps the clearest sign the tide has turned.
"Romney surge post-debate overtakes Obama"
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Actually, Romney's bounce is already fading: Romney accomplished "an awful lot" for one night, says Nate Silver at The New York Times. He rescued his campaign from "a potential 'death spiral,'" and presented himself as "competent and cool-headed" candidate, inching toward the center without getting much pushback. The day after the showdown he might have stood a 50-50 chance of winning, but, partly due to a strong jobs report, he's slipping back into the role of underdog — if a slightly stronger one.
"Oct. 7: National polls show signs of settling"
Obama lost the momentum, and that matters: Before the debate, Obama "was like a freight train rolling to re-election," says the Booman Tribune, and Romney was "a car accelerating over a cliff." The race has undeniably tightened, and "I'm pretty sure the damage will be lasting and costly because we probably cannot regain the speed and momentum" that was lost. Even if Obama still wins, he won't have the mandate he looked certain to carry out of the election — unless he can turn it around in the remaining two debates.
Read more political coverage at The Week's 2012 Election Center.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
-
5 weather-beaten cartoons about the Texas floods
Cartoons Artists take on funding cuts, politicizing tragedy, and more
-
What has the Dalai Lama achieved?
The Explainer Tibet’s exiled spiritual leader has just turned 90, and he has been clarifying his reincarnation plans
-
Europe's heatwave: the new front line of climate change
In the Spotlight How will the continent adapt to 'bearing the brunt of climate change'?
-
The last words and final moments of 40 presidents
The Explainer Some are eloquent quotes worthy of the holders of the highest office in the nation, and others... aren't
-
The JFK files: the truth at last?
In The Spotlight More than 64,000 previously classified documents relating the 1963 assassination of John F. Kennedy have been released by the Trump administration
-
'Seriously, not literally': how should the world take Donald Trump?
Today's big question White House rhetoric and reality look likely to become increasingly blurred
-
Will Trump's 'madman' strategy pay off?
Today's Big Question Incoming US president likes to seem unpredictable but, this time round, world leaders could be wise to his playbook
-
Democrats vs. Republicans: which party are the billionaires backing?
The Explainer Younger tech titans join 'boys' club throwing money and support' behind President Trump, while older plutocrats quietly rebuke new administration
-
US election: where things stand with one week to go
The Explainer Harris' lead in the polls has been narrowing in Trump's favour, but her campaign remains 'cautiously optimistic'
-
Is Trump okay?
Today's Big Question Former president's mental fitness and alleged cognitive decline firmly back in the spotlight after 'bizarre' town hall event
-
The life and times of Kamala Harris
The Explainer The vice-president is narrowly leading the race to become the next US president. How did she get to where she is now?