Knight Ridder/MSNBC Poll Shows Bush Still Ahead in Five 'Red' Battleground States - Colorado, Missouri, New Hampshire, West Virginia, Ohio In Ohio, Gap Narrows to One-Point Bush Lead; Race Still Tight in Colorado, Missouri, New Hampshire, W. Virginia SAN JOSE, Calif. and SECAUCUS, N.J., Oct. 20 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- The latest results in a new series of election surveys, conducted for MSNBC and Knight Ridder by Mason-Dixon, has found that President Bush continues to lead in five battleground states (labeled "red" for their color coding on maps) that he won in the 2000 election: Colorado, Missouri, New Hampshire, West Virginia and Ohio. However, he holds only a one-point lead in Ohio and leads by three points in New Hampshire. At least 6% of voters remain undecided in each state. Less than two weeks before Election Day, the Knight Ridder/MSNBC survey offers a detailed look at the shifting state-by-state battleground where the presidency will be decided. A second wave of poll results from "blue" states -- Wisconsin, Iowa, Michigan, Oregon and Pennsylvania -- will be announced on Thursday night, Oct. 21. The MSNBC/Knight Ridder survey of 625 likely voters in each of the five states was conducted by Mason-Dixon Polling & Research on Oct. 14-16 and had an error margin of plus or minus four percentage points. Following are the poll's top-line results: If the election were held today would you vote for: CO MO NH OH WV Kerry-Edwards 43 44 45 45 44 Bush-Cheney 49 49 48 46 49 Nader-Camejo 1 -- 1 -- 1 Other 1 -- -- 1 -- Undecided 6 7 7 8 6 Bush Approval Rating Continues to Hold at About 50%, Slips to 47% in Ohio The Knight Ridder/MSNBC poll found that the president's overall approval rating continues to hover at about 50% in these swing states, similar to the poll's findings a month ago. In Ohio, however, Bush's approval rating fell to 47% from 51% a month ago, splitting almost evenly those who approve the job he is doing and those who disapprove (46%). CO MO NH OH WV Approve 50 51 49 47 52 Disapprove 42 43 44 46 42 Undecided 8 6 6 7 6 Survey Methodology The results are the second of three series of swing state polls to be conducted by Mason-Dixon Polling & Research. These polls measure voter favorability and voter preference for top presidential candidates who appear on the 2004 general election state ballot in the key swing states that voted for President Bush in the 2000 election. The polls included questions aimed at exploring the issues that may determine how undecided voters make up their minds. States included in the poll are Iowa, Missouri (polling done in conjunction with St. Paul Pioneer Press), Oregon, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin. The poll was conducted between Oct. 14 and Oct. 16, 2004. The margin of error is +/-4 percent. About Knight Ridder Knight Ridder is the nation's second-largest newspaper publisher, with products in print and online. The company publishes 31 daily newspapers in 28 U.S. markets, with a readership of 8.7 million daily and 12.6 million Sunday. Knight Ridder also has investments in a variety of Internet and technology companies and two newsprint companies. The company's Internet operation, Knight Ridder Digital, develops and manages the company's online properties. It is the founder and operator of Real Cities (http://www.realcities.com/), the largest national network of city and regional Web sites in more than 100 U.S. markets. Knight Ridder and Knight Ridder Digital are headquartered in San Jose, Calif. About MSNBC MSNBC is a joint venture between NBC Universal, a leading provider of news and information, and Microsoft, the leader in personal computer software and a major provider of Internet online services. Built on the worldwide resources of NBC News, MSNBC is a 24-hour cable news network and Internet news service at msnbc.com. About Mason-Dixon Polling & Research, Inc. Mason-Dixon is an independent polling firm that conducts voter surveys for news media, advocacy groups, trade associations and political action committees. Mason-Dixon is the nation's most active state polling organization, conducting copyrighted public opinion polls for news media organizations in all 50 states. These media clients include over 250 local television affiliates and over 100 daily newspapers. Since 1983, Mason-Dixon Polling & Research, Inc. has conducted surveys in every state in the country, on almost every public issue, and tracked every major election and referendum. DATASOURCE: Knight Ridder CONTACT: Annalise Carol, +1-646-805-2023, or for Knight Ridder; or Jeremy Gaines, +1-201-583-5362, or , for MSNBC Web site: http://msnbc.com/ Web site: http://www.knightridder.com/

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