USA NOW: 2012 Election

Many pundit predictions favor Obama

 

 

Monday is the last full day of campaigning, and predictions on the presidential race are rolling in — many of them favoring President Obama.

Nate Silver, whose FiveThirtyEight blog has been much discussed this election season, says the president now has an 86.3% chance of winning the Electoral College on Tuesday against Republican challenger Mitt Romney. Silver projects around 307 electoral votes for Obama; 270 are needed to win.

Meanwhile, the "crystal ball" at the University of Virginia Center for Politics predicts a 290-248 electoral victory for the president.

"With a slight, unexpected lift provided by Hurricane Sandy, Mother Nature's October Surprise, President Barack Obama appears poised to win his second term tomorrow," the center writes. "Our final Electoral College projection has the president winning the key swing states of Colorado, Iowa, Nevada, New Hampshire, Ohio and Wisconsin."

And Taegan Goddard's Political Wire reports:

"Dave Wissing notes that if final polls from The Economist/YouGov are correct, President Obama will win 303 electoral votes.

"The final Reuters/Ipsos polls suggest Obama will win 294 electoral votes.

"The final Public Policy Polling surveys point to an Obama landslide of 332 electoral votes."

Of course, these are all predictions -- they'll count up actual votes on Tuesday.

And Republicans have predictions of their own -- a Romney victory.

Wrote long-time George W. Bush adviser Karl Rove: "Sometime after the cock crows on the morning of Nov. 7, Mitt Romney will be declared America's 45th president. Let's call it 51%-48%, with Mr. Romney carrying at least 279 Electoral College votes, probably more."

It won't be long now.