Poll: Obama holds 7-point lead over Romney

Mitt Romney's unfavorable rating is up, most Americans think the Republican presidential challenger favors the rich, and it appears the number of people who believe that the economy will not get better if Romney is elected has edged up slightly, according to a new national poll.

But a CNN/ORC International survey released Thursday also indicates that Romney's supporters are increasingly getting behind the presumptive GOP nominee.

It all adds up to a seven point advantage for President Barack Obama over the former Massachusetts governor, with 52 percent of registered voters questioned in the survey saying that they'd vote to re-elect the president and 45 percent backing Romney.

"Among independent voters, the poll indicates President Obama has a 53 percent-42 percent lead," CNN polling director Keating Holland said. "The president holds a nine-point advantage among women voters and a smaller six-point edge among men."

The good news for Romney: Four months after he wrapped up the race for the GOP nomination, 56 percent of Romney voters say they strongly support him, up from 47 percent in May. Sixty-one percent of Obama voters say they strongly support the president.

Since the start of the general election in April, the Obama campaign and Democratic groups have launched attacks on the presumptive Republican nominee, and the survey indicates that they appear to be working.

While Romney's favorable rating has remained steady (47 percent now compared to 48 percent in July), his unfavorable rating has jumped from 42 percent last month to 48 percent now. The president's 56 percent-42 percent favorable-unfavorable rating now is little changed from July.

Among independents, the poll indicates Romney's image has taken a beating. In May, only 40 percent of independents had an unfavorable view of Romney. Now, 52 percent of independents have a negative view of him.

Other findings: Sixty-four percent of all Americans, and 68 percent of independents, think Romney favors the rich over the middle class. And 63 percent of the public thinks Romney should release more tax returns than he has already made public, a figure which rises to 67 percent among independents.

"These are all signs that a summer of negative campaigning on the part of the Democrats seems to be taking its toll on the presumptive GOP nominee," says Holland.

Most significantly, it appears that Romney's image as a can-do guy on the economy may have also been hurt. In May, 50 percent of all Americans said that the economy would get better if Romney were elected. That's now down to 45 percent, two points below Obama's number. It's likely that all of this is the result of the Democrats' efforts to paint Romney in an unflattering light, but so far Obama has avoided any blowback from that strategy, as evidenced by no rise in his unfavorable rating.

Who do Americans think will win the election?

Regardless of which candidate they support, 63 percent think Obama will win re-election, with one third saying Romney will win.

"That may not translate directly into votes, but it is worth noting that in August of previous election years, the public accurately predicted the winner in 1996, 2000 and 2008, and in 2004 George W. Bush and John Kerry were tied," adds Holland.

Control of Congress is also up for grabs in November. According to the survey, 45 percent say the country would be better off if Congress were controlled by Democrats, with 39 percent saying things would be better if the GOP ran Capitol Hill.

The CNN poll was conducted by ORC International Tuesday and Wednesday (Aug. 7-8), with 1,010 adults nationwide, including 911 registered voters, questioned by telephone. The survey's overall sampling error is plus or minus 3 percentage points.