Choice of President Matters More in 2004

The presidential election is capturing the public's attention much more now than it did at this point four and eight years ago. Nearly half of Americans (47%) say they are more interested in politics than they were four years ago, up from 38% who expressed that view in June 2000. Public attention to election news is greater now than at a comparable point in the last three campaigns. And this is translating into a more focused electorate – nearly six-in-ten voters (58%) say they are giving "quite a lot" of thought to the election, compared with 46% who said that four years ago at this time.