Rove: No Presidential Candidate has been at 50% or Higher at this Point in the Race and Lost

At this point in the presidential race, no candidate has been at 50% or higher in the Gallup survey and lost, and Romney is there. —Dick Young

Obama Won the Debate but Is Losing the Argument, Karl Rove, Wall Street Journal

On Monday Mr. Romney reached 50% in Gallup’s daily tracking of likely voters—something Mr. Obama has not yet been able to do. No other presidential candidate has been at 50% or higher at this point in the race in this survey and lost.

The movement in the race is reflected by rising poll numbers for Mr. Romney in at least 20 states, including the battlegrounds of Florida, North Carolina, Colorado, Virginia, Ohio, Nevada, New Hampshire, Wisconsin, Iowa and Pennsylvania. Mr. Romney is now ahead in the first three.

The Denver debate changed the campaign in a way no other presidential debate ever has. What happened two nights ago at Hofstra University was entertaining and at times illuminating, but Mr. Obama needed a knockout. What he got instead was something closer to a draw.