Instant polls conducted in the hours following the vice-presidential debate last night show voters believe Paul Ryan bested Joe Biden during their appearance at Centre College.
A CNN poll shows 48 percent of voters who watched the vice presidential debate think that Rep. Paul Ryan won whereas 44 percent say that Vice President Joe Biden was the winner. The four percent spread was within the 5 percent margin of error.
As CNN noted from its poll:
Half of all debate watchers questioned in the poll said the showdown didn’t make them more likely to vote for either of the candidates’ bosses, 28% said the debate made them more likely to vote for Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney and 21% said the faceoff made them more likely to vote to re-elect President Barack Obama.
According to the survey, 55% said that the vice president did better than expected, with 51% saying that the congressman from Wisconsin performed better than expected.
By a 50%-41% margin, debate watchers say that Ryan rather than Biden better expressed himself.
Seven in ten said Biden was seen as spending more time attacking his opponent, and that may be a contributing factor in Ryan’s 53%-43% advantage on being more likable. Ryan also had a slight advantage on being more in touch with the problems of average Americans.
Other instant polls follow: Ryan 56% vs. Biden 36% (CNBC) & Ryan 51% vs. Biden 43% (AP)
An NBC poll of 435 uncommitted voters after the debate showed Paul Ryan winning with 63% to 31%. Ryan was declared the winner over Biden by 63 percent to 31 percent in a poll of 534 uncommitted voters conducted by NBC News after the debate. Fifty-six percent thought Biden would be an effective president if necessary, compared with Fifty-four percent for Ryan.
According to a tweet from CNBC’s verified Twitter account, an after-debate poll shows Ryan besting Biden 56 – 36% “[POLL RESULTS] Who do you think won the VP Debate? Paul Ryan: 56%, Joe Biden: 36%, Neither: 8”
Meanwhile, Survey USA looked at the debate from one state, California. Although Romney is not expecte to win the debate, the pol showed more voters moved to the Romney column as a result of the VP debate than the Obama side.
1,000 California adults were interviewed by SurveyUSA immediately following tonight’s Vice Presidential debate. Of the adults, 701 watched the debate. Results of debate watchers:
* 48% say Joe Biden clearly won the debate.
* 41% say Paul Ryan clearly won the debate.
* 10% say there was no clear winner.
In a “blue” state such as California, it is not surprising to find that more Democrats watched the debate than did Republicans. Looking just at the reaction of Independent voters, Biden and Ryan battle to an effective draw: 44% Biden, 42% Ryan. Looking just a moderates, Biden is seen as the winner, 50% to 38%.
22% say they changed which candidate for President they support as a result of the debate. Of those who tell SurveyUSA they changed their mind:
* 30% switched from the Obama ticket to the Romney ticket.
* 29% switched from undecided to the Romney ticket.
* A total of 59% switched to the Romney ticket.
* 20% switched from the Romney ticket to the Obama ticket.
* 20% switched from undecided to the Obama ticket.
* A total of 40% switched to the Obama ticket.
* 53% say Biden is ready to be President, if needed.
* 46% say Ryan is ready to be President, if needed.
