Republican candidate Mitt Romney's strong performance in the presidential debate has cost President Obama his large lead on health care and Medicare issues among voters.
The latest survey from the Pew Research Center for People and the Press shows Obama has lost a lot of ground on health care issues, with the president leading Romney by 3 points on which candidate survey participants think would be better at "dealing with health care." That's a significant drop from just last month, when the same survey showed Obama had a 13-point edge on both questions.
Obama now leads Romney 46-43 on Medicare and 47-44 on health care.
Recommended For You
Overall, Romney has wiped out Obama's voter advantage. The Republican nominee now leads Obama by four points among likely voters, according to the poll. The president held an eight-point lead among likely voters in last month's Pew survey.
Most voters—nearly two-thirds—say Romney did a better job in the debate, which helped voters see the former Massachusetts governor more positively, the poll finds. Voters view the Republican as the better candidate to reduce the deficit and improve the jobs situation.
Romney has made gains on both women voters and likely voters. But Obama is still viewed as better able to connect with ordinary people, the poll finds.
© 2025 ALM Global, LLC, All Rights Reserved. Request academic re-use from www.copyright.com. All other uses, submit a request to [email protected]. For more information visit Asset & Logo Licensing.
