By Jess Long
Barack Obama and Mitt Romney will arrive in Ohio today hours before the final unemployment figures are released prior to election day next Tuesday.
Both candidates have been eagerly awaiting the release of these figures to see if they will give their campaign a late boost.
In September the jobless rate fell from 8.1% to 7.8% and Obama’s team used this to prove that the economy is on the mend.
But The Financial Forecast Centre is forecasting a 0.1% rise in unemployment last month, taking to the figure to 7.9%.
The unemployment rate in Ohio is currently much lower then the national average at 7%, according to official state figures. This does not mean, though, that today’s announcement will not effect canvassing in the state.
Ohio’s motor industry, which employs over 800,000 people, was hit hard by the recession and Romney has accused Obama’s policy for making General Motors outsource production abroad in a new radio advert.
The ad claimed that “Under President Obama, GM cut 15,000 American jobs, but they are now planning to double the number of cars built in China, which means 15,000 more jobs for China.”
Obama will tackle this accusation as he plans to spend all day in Ohio before returning to the state each day in the run up to election day.
No Republican candidate has made it to the White House without winning Ohio, which holds 18 Electoral College votes, and this is why Romney is planning to hold two rallies while he is in the state.
With Ohio deciding the winner of the last 12 elections, the candidates’ performance in the state today, along with the release of October’s unemployment figures, could prove a determining factor to the outcome on Tuesday.