Reagan's landslide challenges the pulse-taker profession For weeks before the presidential election, the gurus of public opinion polling were nearly unanimous in their findings. In survey after survey, they agreed that the coming choice between President Jimmy Carter and Challenger Ronald Reagan was "too close to call." A few points at most, they said, separated the two major contenders. But when the votes were counted, the former California Governor had defeated Carter by a margin of 51% to 41% in the popular voteâa rout for a U.S. presidential race. In the electoral college, the Reagan victory was a 10-to-l avalanche that left the President holding only six states and the District of Columbia. Read the rest: http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,924541,00.html
Also, with Diebold (remotely controlled) electronic voting machines.....ANYTHING is possible.....LOL!!!
This just proves that even moderators can be a bit misguided. You forgot to mention an incredibly UNPOPULAR sitting REPUBLICAN president, an economy going south and the republican brand being toxic. A closer approximation would be if Nixon did not resign but finished his term with bad ratings and then Carter campaigned vs Reagan. I guarantee you Reagan would not have won under such a scenario.
Carter, an unpopular president lost in a landslide during a time of recession, high gas prices and middle east conflict. Sound familiar?