Poll Suggests Libertarian Gary Johnson Could Play Spoiler For Mitt Romney
Last week during the Republican National Convention I wondered if Libertarian presidential candidate Gary Johnson might not serve as a spoiler for Mitt Romney. Johnson’s campaign says he’ll be on the ballot in all 50 states, and after the way the libertarian wing of the GOP was treated at the RNC last week, I wondered how many libertarian-leaning Republicans might be inspired to vote for a Republican-turned-Libertarian.
It may be quite a few according to a new Zogby poll.
In a survey of 798 likely voters conducted August 31 through September 3, Zogby found that if Johnson’s name was not mentioned, Obama and Romney were basically tied, with Obama receiving 43.8 percent of the vote, Romney getting 43.5 percent, and 12.7 percent undecided.
But throw Johnson’s name in and the numbers shift toward Obama is a way that could swing what is expected to be one of the closest elections ever.
Obama now gets 42.7 percent of the vote compared to 41 percent for Romney, with 4.3 percent backing Johnson and 12 percent unsure.
If the election is a close one, and I think it will be, the number of votes Johnson pulls from Romney could be the margin of defeat for the Republican. Which may have the GOP regretting their treatment of Ron Paul and conservative grassroots activists at the convention.
Tags: Barack Obama, gary johnson, mitt romney, republican national convention, ron paul
