Family Life

05.03.12 | Bob Price

The latest Quinnipiac University Swing State Poll gives Obama an 8-point lead in Pennsylvania, but shows him in a virtual tie with Romney in the key states of Florida and Ohio.

"Gov. Mitt Romney has closed President Barack Obama's leads in Ohio and Florida to the point that those two states are now essentially tied, a turnaround from the end of March when the president enjoyed leads in those key states," said Peter A. Brown, assistant director of the Quinnipiac University Polling Institute.

Brown added that "the good news for the president is that he has an 8-point lead in Pennsylvania, approaching the 11-point margin he had in carrying the Keystone State in 2008.

"Overall, Obama is doing slightly better than Romney in these critical swing states today," Brown said.

The bottom line numbers:

Florida: Romney 44%, Obama 43%;

Ohio: Obama 44%, Romney 42%;

Pennsylvania: Obama 47%, Romney 39%.

No candidate has ever won the White House without carrying at least two of those states.

More from the latest Quinnipiac Poll:

Voters in all three states approve of the president's handling of Afghanistan, but by margins averaging 2-1, voters say the U.S. should not be involved there. ...

At least 67 percent of voters in each state say the economy is in a recession, but at least 51 percent of voters in each state say the recovery has begun. Voters in Florida and Ohio say Romney would do a better job on the economy. Pennsylvania voters are divided.