Poll Hints at Tight Race on Education Issues

Political independents give presumptive GOP presidential nominee Mitt Romney an edge over President Barack Obama when it comes to which candidate would be better in strengthening public education, according to a poll released today by Phi Delta Kappa and Gallup.

The former Massachusetts governor takes a 46 percent to 41 percent lead over President Obama on that score among those identifying themselves as independents in what is expected to be a tight election.

But among all respondents in the PDK/Gallup national survey, Mr. Obama has the lead when it comes to which candidate would be better on education policy. Forty-nine percent of respondents said that if they were voting only on which candidate would be better positioned to improve public schools, they would choose Mr. Obama, while 44 percent said they...