The Pittsburgh Press (October 26, 1944)
Magazine survey gives Roosevelt slight edge
New York (UP) –
Fortune Magazine reported today that its latest election survey conducted in the week ending Oct. 20 showed a 53.5 percent preference for President Roosevelt against a 46.5 percent vote for Republican presidential nominee Thomas E. Dewey.
While the Roosevelt lead represented a slight gain over the survey of the previous week, the magazine said three factors make the margin unstable and offer possibilities of an upset.
The soldier vote, which cannot be “sampled” under present law, was cited as the most important of these factors. Wartime migration, with its accompanying effect on registration, and the possible occurrence of events from day to day which will shift opinion were listed as other major influences.