Poll Shows Obama With 14-Point Lead Over Romney In NJ - Philadelphia News, Weather and Sports from WTXF FOX 29

Poll Shows Obama With 14-Point Lead Over Romney In NJ

New Jersey voters are giving President Barack Obama a 14-point lead over Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney -- and it turns out personality is key, according to a new Rutgers-Eagleton Poll released Wednesday.

According to poll data, 51 percent of likely voters polled just before the GOP convention say they would vote for Obama, while 37 percent support Romney.

The data shows another six percent prefer someone else, while five percent were unsure.

"The president leads in New Jersey primarily because of his personal qualities," David Redlawsk, director of the Rutgers-Eagleton Poll and professor of political science at Rutgers University said.

"Voters like him better and feel he shares their values and cares about them. While Romney keeps it closer on the hard issue of the economy, and wins easily on leadership, voters generally prefer to support someone they like over someone they don't."

Fifty-four percent hold a favorable impression of Obama, while 39 percent view him unfavorably, according to the poll.

The Rutgers-Eagleton Poll suggests Obama holds the lead despite the fact that a majority of likely voters, 57 percent, thinks the country is on the wrong track, while 36 percent say it is going in the right direction.

You can read the full poll and past polls on the Rutgers-Eagleton Institute of Politics website.