Obama vs Romney Polls: Obama Widens Lead Over Romney

President Barack Obama is widening his lead over Republican challenger Mitt Romney, despite mixed reviews about his convention speech and meager jobs figures for the month of August, according to Reuters. 

The president is picking up support following the Democratic National Convention, in Charlotte, North Carolina, to -- against all odds -- widen a narrow lead over his Republican challenger Mitt Romney, in a new Reuters/Ipsos poll released on Saturday

The daily tracking poll showed Obama with a lead of 4 percentage points over Romney. Out of 1,457 likely voters surveyed online, over the previous four days, 47% said they support Obama versus 43% who would vote for Romney -- if the election were held today as opposed to on November 6.

"The bump is actually happening. I know there was some debate whether it would happen... but it's here," said Ipsos pollster Julia Clark, referring to the much-anticipated convention "bounce" many presidential candidates enjoy after making their nominations official. The previous number had Obama at 46% over Romney's 44%. 

Obama's widening lead comes despite mixed reactions to the president's convention speech, which was compared to the more rousing and inspirational address by former President Bill Clinton on Wednesday. The president's steady support also comes on the heels of another disappointing jobs report that saw the creation of only 96,000 jobs during August. 

However, Obama's lead over Romney is comparable to Romney's former lead over the president after the Republican National Convention finished last week, Clark said. "We don't have another convention now to turn our attention to, so (Obama's bounce) may maintain," Clark said. "How big it'll be and how long it will last remains to be seen."

Obama increased his lead over Romney in the following categories: more "eloquent," 50% Obama and 25% Romney; "smart enough for the job," 46% for Obama versus 37% for Romney. Others categories in which Obama's Republican challenger trailed were "represents America" and "has the right values." The only category Romney dominated was being "a man of faith." 

As for the conventions, 41% said the DNC was "average" and only 29% described it as "good." On the Republican side, 38% said the RNC was "average" while 27% said the Tampa gathering was "good."