Dem convention gives Obama a bump in polls

The president is getting some breathing room in his bid for re-election, according to new polls.

A Gallup survey shows that President Barack Obama netted a five point jump over Republican challenger Mitt Romney following the Democratic National Convention. While 38% of Americans said that what they saw at the convention made them less likely to give the president another term, 43% said it made them more likely to give him their vote. In contrast, Romney received a two point bump after the Republican convention.

"Obama's job approval rating now stands at 50%, up from 45% before the convention, and the percentage of Americans identifying as Democrats or leaning Democratic has increased to 48% from 43% before the convention," according to Gallup.

But Obama's bump was dwarfed by the public's gushing reviews of the DNC's keynote speaker, former president Bill Clinton. A whopping 56% of Americans rated Clinton's speech positively, including 34% who termed it "excellent," according to Gallup. Only 43% of all American adults rated Obama's speech as excellent or good.

While Rasmussen and Gallup polls now show the president with a five-point lead over Romney, an averaging of all major surveys reduces his lead to 2%, according to Real Clear Politics.

Reuters reported Monday that Obama raised $114 million to Romney's $111 million in August, beating the Republicans for the first time in months as the presidential race heads to its final stretch.