Romney woos women from Obama

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Charles Dharapak / The Associated Press Republican presidential candidate, former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney shakes hands with supporters as he campaigns at Jet Machine, which supplies components for the defense, aerospace, and oil and gas industry, Thursday, Oct. 25, 2012, in Cincinnati, Ohio. At right is a U.S. Secret Service agent. (CP)

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Pablo Martinez Monsivais / The Associated Press U.S. President Barack Obama, left, casts his vote during early voting in the 2012 election Thursday, Oct. 25, 2012, in Chicago, at the Martin Luther King Community Center. (CP)

CINCINNATI, Ohio -- U.S. President Barack Obama, seeking to shore up support among women, intensified pressure Thursday on Mitt Romney to break any ties with a Republican Senate candidate who said if a woman becomes pregnant from rape it is "something God intended." Romney ignored the issue, holding to an optimistic tone as he fought for victory in crucial Ohio.

Obama, wrapping up a 40-hour battleground-state blitz, headed for his hometown of Chicago to cast his ballot 12 days before election day. The stopover was more than a photo op -- it was an attempt to boost turnout in early voting, a centrepiece of Obama's strategy.

The president also made repeated, though indirect, references to Indiana Republican Richard Mourdock's controversial comment on rape and pregnancy. "We've seen again this week, I don't think any male politicians should be making health-care decisions for women," Obama told a crowd of about 15,000 on an unseasonably warm fall day in Richmond, Va. The president's aides pressed further, using a web video to highlight Romney's endorsement of Mourdock and to accuse the GOP nominee of kowtowing to his party's extreme elements.

Romney, who appears in a TV ad declaring support for Mourdock, brushed aside questions from reporters during a stop at a Cincinnati diner. He centred his efforts instead on turning his campaign's claims of momentum into a more practical roadmap to winning the required 270 Electoral College votes. Ohio is crucial to that effort.

"This election is not about me," Romney told a 3,000-person crowd at an Ohio manufacturing firm. "It's not about the Republican Party. It's about America. And it's about your family."

Romney has disavowed Mourdock's comments, but his campaign says he continues to support the Indiana Republican's Senate candidacy.

Polls show Obama and Romney tied nationally. A new Associated Press-GfK poll of likely voters had Romney at 47 per cent and Obama at 45 per cent, a result within the poll's margin of sampling error. But the race will be decided by nine or so competitive states: Ohio, Florida, Virginia, North Carolina, New Hampshire, Iowa, Wisconsin, Nevada and Colorado.

The urgent task for both campaigns is to cobble together wins in enough states to cross the 270 threshold.

Obama advisers have identified at least three viable options. Winning Ohio, Iowa and Wisconsin would put him over the top, as would winning Ohio, Iowa and Nevada. A five-state combination of Iowa, New Hampshire, Wisconsin, Nevada and Colorado would also seal the deal for Obama.

Romney's team has yet to publicly outline specific pathways to 270. Without a win in Ohio, however, the Republican nominee would have to sweep every other competitive state.

That reality was the motivation behind Romney's day-long swing through three Ohio cities Thursday. Obama was to finish his day in Ohio, too.

Romney is hoping to boost his prospects by cutting into Obama's advantage with women. The AP-GfK poll suggested that effort was bearing fruit, with Romney erasing the president's 16-point advantage among women voters.

Obama advisers insist they've lost no ground with women. But their eagerness to highlight Romney's connections to Mourdock indicated some degree of nervousness within the campaign.

Romney's campaign reached out to women Thursday by sending Ann Romney on daytime's Rachael Ray show.

About 7.2 million people have cast ballots. About 35 per cent of the electorate is expected to vote before Nov. 6.

-- The Associated Press

Republished from the Winnipeg Free Press print edition October 26, 2012 A18