Obama Easily Winning Women Vote: Poll

President Barack Obama's support among women has risen as the economy improves, according to an Associated Press/GfK poll.

A slowly reviving economy seemed to buoy Obama with the critical bloc of female voters. His approval ratings on the economy and unemployment were ten points higher than in December.

Obama trounced Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz. among women in the 2008 election,with women choosing Obama over McCain by a margin of 56 to 43. That lead disappeared among men, whom Obama narrowly won 49-48.

The same appears to be true for the upcoming 2012 election. Hypothetical one-on-one matchups have Obama beating Romney 54 percent to 41 percent and Santorum 56 percent to 40 percent among women, but Obama would be essentially tied with his Republican rivals among men.

Social issues that resonate with women have also gotten more attention recently, particularly with the uproar over the Obama administration's mandate that all employee health insurance plans -- including those offered by religious institutions -- cover birth control. At a hearing on the issue, Democrats lambasted Republicans for not calling a single female to testify.

Where are the women? Rep. Carolyn Maloney,(D-.N.Y. asked. When I look at this panel I don't see one single woman representing the tens of millions of women across the country who want and need insurance coverage.

--

--