Although Obama's popularity could be a post-convention bump, if his support translates into votes for Democrat Elizabeth Warren, it could spell trouble for Republican U.S. Sen. Scott Brown and his re-election bid.
President Barack Obama's lead over former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney in the Bay State has grown significantly since May, a Western New England University Polling Institute poll reveals.More politics news
Mitt Romney in leaked video: Nearly half of all Americans 'believe they are victims'
: Already scrambling to steady a struggling campaign, Republican Mitt Romney confronted a new headache Monday after a video surfaced showing him telling wealthy donors that almost half of all Americans "believe they are victims" entitled to extensive government support.
SPRINGFIELD - Although President Barack Obama is expected to defeat Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney in Massachusetts this November, the margin by which the incumbent is edging the one-term Bay State governor is growing, according to a new poll released Tuesday.
A survey by the Western New England University Polling Institute through a partnership with The Republican and MassLive.com revealed that Obama is now edging Romney, 64-32 percent, among registered voters and by 22 points, 60-38 percent, among likely voters.
In late May, the last time the university conducted a political poll, Obama led with registered voters 56-34 percent. At the time, likely voters weren't distinguished since the November election was more than five months away.
While Obama's favorable/unfavorable ratio has become more positive since the previous poll, Romney's popularity has dropped overall, according to the survey.
Obama's present favorable/unfavorable ranking is 64-29 among registered voters compared to 57-33 percent in May. Romney's ratio, on the other hand, is now 31-60 percent compared to 36-50 percent in May.
Additionally, the president's job approval rating has grown to 60 percent among registered voters in Massachusetts, compared to 54 percent in May. His positive job approval number among likely voters is 57 percent, the poll concluded.
So what is causing Obama's popularity to jump so much while Romney's dwindles?
According to Tim Vercellotti, professor of political science at Western New England University and the director of the polling institute, the timing of the Democratic National Convention and current enthusiasm of Democrats may be helping.
"Obama seems to be enjoying a post-convention bounce with these numbers. Of the three polls that we've done so far this year, these results represent Obama's best numbers to date in terms of job approval, favorability, and presidential match-up when looking at our previous data for registered voters," Vercellotti said. "Mitt Romney's favorability is the lowest it has been this year among registered voters."
And although Romney's late summer addition of U.S. Rep. Paul Ryan, of Wisconsin, as his running mate re-energized his campaign, it didn't do him any favors in Massachusetts, according to the poll.
Of the likely voters surveyed, only 16 percent said Ryan would make them more likely to vote for Romney while 27 percent said the inclusion makes them less likely to support the former governor. Fifty five percent of the likely voters surveyed said Ryan has absolutely no effect on their choice for president.
And in terms of popularity, Democratic vice president Joe Biden's numbers are looking better than Ryan's in Massachusetts. Of the likely voters polled, 51 percent said they have a favorable opinion of Biden while 35 percent said they have an unfavorable view.
Ryan got a thumbs up from 29 percent of the same group while 47 percent see him in a negative light.
The overall support Obama has in the Bay State could prove useful for Democrat Elizabeth Warren, who is challenging Republican U.S. Sen. Scott Brown to win the seat once held by the late Senator Ted Kennedy until his death in 2009.
Warren, who the poll concluded is leading Brown among likely voters 50-44 percent, is on track to receive a vote from 77 percent of those supporting Obama and eight percent of those supporting Romney.
Brown continues to run strong among his base, with support from 91 percent of Republicans and only four percent of GOP voters gravitating to Warren. Brown holds a healthy 22-point lead among independents, but for now, that is not enough to overcome Warren’s strength among Democrats.
Brown's campaign has worked hard to win over independent voters, who make up more than 52 percent of the commonwealth's electorate. As of August, 35 percent of Massachusetts residents were registered Democrats and 11 percent were registered Republicans.
And with 21 percent of likely independent voters saying they might change their minds, compared to 15 percent of Democrats and 9 percent of Republicans, it is a strong possibility that those voters will be the ones to sway the election.
The new Western New England University poll of 545 registered voters has a 4.2 percent margin of error, while the sample of 444 likely voters has a 4.6 percent margin of error.