New polls gave a mixed picture on whether Democratic presidential nominee Senator John Kerry got a "bounce" from the party's convention, and a CNN-USA Today Gallup poll on Sunday even showed the Democratic ticket trailing the Republicans' among likely voters.
But a Newsweek poll released on Saturday said Kerry gained a four-point boost in the polls from the Democratic National Convention held last week in Boston.
PHOTO: REUTERS
Kerry had been hoping for a measurable surge in public approval, known as a bounce, which sometimes has given nominees a double-digit boost in the polls following their four days in the spotlight at the convention.
Democrats this year have said the closely divided electorate and relatively small number of undecided voters made a big bounce unlikely.
The CNN-USA Today poll of about 1,000 respondents conducted on Friday and on Saturday showed US President George W. Bush garnering 50 percent to 47 percent for Kerry among likely voters. Bush trailed Kerry among likely voters earlier in July, 47 percent to 49 percent.
In the Newsweek poll conducted on Thursday and on Friday, Kerry received 49 percent of the vote to Bush's 42 percent. In early July, Kerry led Bush 47 percent to 44 percent.
Either way, Kerry said he wasn't paying attention.
Appearing on Fox News Sunday with his running mate, Senator John Edwards, he said he remembered the polls last year that showed his presidential bid staggering.
"Polls are not what's important. What's important is what we're going to do for America," Kerry said.
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