Ohio has been an essential “get” every election year, having the 7th most electoral votes and the ability to go from red to blue easily make it one of the most heavily campaigned states in the nation. The Ohio voters however are less than enthusiastic this election year as neither candidate seems to be reverberating well with the largest Ohio demographic, the white working class. The economic recovery promised by President Obama has been too slow especially with people and companies facing bankruptcy and foreclosure. While the economy has gotten better in Ohio the too little too late sentiments make it difficult to get voters enthusiastic about the incumbent president. The presidents job approval ratings have been split evenly, and many are hesitant to vote for him fearing the economy could start to slip. Romney on the other hand faces his share of struggle in Ohio for very different reasons. To middle class Ohio voters Romney comes off as elitist and out of touch, many are reluctant to trust the man who comes from corporate America with corporate money in off shore bank accounts. Romney’s narrow win over Rick Santorum during the Republican primaries shows he has a lot of work to do amongst the working class and evangelical voters.
Backup Plans
The latest presidential tracking polls have been showing a neck and neck race between Romney and Obama and both candidates are adding even more Ohio campaign centers to increase their popularity and enthusiasm for the general election at large. Campaign strategists at both parties know how important winning Ohio is for presidential hopefuls, in fact no Republican candidate has won the presidential election without winning Ohio. However there are other swing states to focus on with large numbers of electoral votes up for grabs. Both parties are preparing now to win with or without Ohio.
