WASHINGTON (AP) — College students, who were a key to President Barack Obama's 2008 sweep into the White House, have cooled in their support as they confront a miserable job market and anemic economic recovery, according to an Associated Press-mtvU poll.
The poll results appear to compound the bad news confronting Obama and his Democrats as the president battles to rekindle enthusiasm among the newest voters with only three weeks left before congressional elections. Obama does not face voters again until 2012.
The U.S. economic malaise and stubbornly high unemployment — nearly 10 percent — have considerably curbed Obama's popularity among all voters, taking a sharp bite out of his support on the nation's college campuses, where graduating seniors are facing truly dismal employment prospects.
Virtually all forecasts of the outcome of the Nov. 2 vote show Democrats losing their majority in the House of Representatives. Some Democrats worry about the same outcome in the Senate, although that is considered a long-shot for the Republicans.
All 435 seats in the House are on state ballots. In the Senate, 37 of 100 seats are at stake. Thirty-seven state governorships also will be decided in the election.
Should the Republicans gain ascendancy in either chamber of Congress, Obama's agenda for the final two years of his term likely will be crushed by opposition no votes, likely fueling even further one of the nastiest partisan political climates in recent American history.
Forty-four percent of students approve of the job Obama is doing as president, while 27 percent are unhappy with his stewardship, according to the survey conducted late last month. That's a significant drop from the 60 percent who gave the president high marks in a May 2009 poll. Only 15 percent had a negative opinion back then.
Obama's diminished backing from college students raises further questions about the successful outcome of his and fellow Democrats' efforts to rally them — and other loyal supporters such as blacks and union members.
There were 15 million first-time voters in 2008 — nearly one in eight of that year's total, but Obama's loss of support among that group suggest the newly engaged have not become assured backers.
Exit polls from 2008 showed 55 percent of new voters were age 18 to 24, and those young first-timers strongly backed Obama and Democratic House candidates — a potent bloc if Democrats could lure them back to the voting booth.
In an effort to revitalize that voting bloc, Obama plans to appear Thursday at a youth town hall being broadcast live on MTV (which focuses on the popular music scene), BET (a network that caters to African-Americans) and other networks. He also is to lead a rally Sunday at Ohio State University, and in recent days he headlined gatherings at two other universities.
Political scientists, campaign workers, students and others say many students are unhappy with Obama's handling of the economy, wars in Afghanistan and Iraq and failures to end the ban against gays serving openly in the military or to close the U.S. military prison at Guantanamo Bay in Cuba. There's also frustration with the messy political process and his inability to deliver on his campaign promise to change Washington.
The findings in the AP-mtvU poll, which surveyed more than 2,000 undergraduates age 18 to 24, coincide with what students and others say is sharply diminished political activity on campuses, way down from the frenetic levels of the 2008 presidential race.
Enthusiasm among all groups dips in midterm elections compared to presidential races. The drop-off is compounded for college students, who can be distracted by everything from classes to football and often aren't registered to vote in their school's congressional district.
Meanwhile, first lady Michelle Obama returned to the campaign trail Wednesday, saying that even though change hasn't come fast enough for some people, it would be a mistake for voters to return Republicans to power next month.
Mrs. Obama, in Milwaukee to stump for Wisconsin Sen. Russ Feingold, tried to restore the same enthusiasm that surrounded President Barack Obama's inauguration early last year. She said people were energized back then because they were hopeful, and that it was important for them to re-ignite their passion so the country can finish what voters started.
Later, Obama campaigned for the Democratic candidate for the president's old Illinois Senate seat.
In Delaware, Republican Senate hopeful Christine O'Donnell dismissed comments she's made over the years on religious and social issues such as evolution, sexual abstinence and homosexuality, saying they're not relevant to the campaign.
Squaring off against Democrat Chris Coons in a nationally televised debate, O'Donnell said voters want to hear about job creation and spending, not comments she made as a television commentator long ago. She refused to say if she still believes evolution is a myth, as she has said in the past.
O'Donnell trails Coons by double digits in some polls.
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AP Polling Director Trevor Tompson, Deputy Polling Director Jennifer Agiesta, News Survey Specialist Dennis Junius and writer Alan Fram contributed to this report.
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Online:
AP polls: http://surveys.ap.org
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