During the final weeks of the Democratic race, Obama took pains to praise Clinton almost daily and to avoid any appearance that he was trying to force her to drop out.
In the days since Clinton abandoned the race and endorsed him, the political arm of Planned Parenthood and other women's groups have rallied behind Obama and joined forces to attack McCain. Among other things, they have highlighted McCain's opposition to abortion rights. The Republican's moderate image, they say, has misled many women into thinking he supports abortion rights.
"It's astonishing the extent to which that's just assumed about him," said Hesla.
For a generation, women have favored Democrats, and men have leaned Republican. In 2000, Al Gore won 55% of the female vote; Bush offset that with 54% of the male vote.
In his run for reelection, Bush fared better among women, thanks partly to his emphasis on terrorism in the aftermath of the Sept. 11 attacks. Although he held a 7-percentage-point lead among men over Democratic rival John F. Kerry, Bush finished just 1 percentage point behind among women.
But terrorism is no longer the dominant issue. Bush administration shortcomings in the Iraq war and Hurricane Katrina have damaged the Republican Party. Four out of five voters see the country as headed in the wrong direction.
And now, the nation's economic slowdown is the top concern for voters, and they see Democrats as better suited than Republicans to lead a turnaround.
Among those most concerned about economic troubles are white blue-collar women, a swing group targeted by both the McCain and Obama campaigns.
"Women see themselves as more economically vulnerable than men, more likely recipients of the social safety net at some point in their lives, and they see a larger role for government," said Debbie Walsh, director of the Center for American Women and Politics at Rutgers University.
An NBC/Wall Street Journal poll found a wide gap last week: Women favored Obama over McCain, 52% to 33%. The survey also found that voters who cast ballots for Clinton in the Democratic primaries preferred Obama over McCain, 61% to 19%.
Authenreith, a 43-year-old business owner who lives in West Jefferson, N.C., said Obama "popped out of nowhere" last year and seemed less experienced than Clinton.
But Authenreith, who was a respondent to a Times poll in February, said there was no question now that Obama would better handle the economy and, she hoped, overhaul the healthcare system.
"I know if I vote a Republican in," she said, "it will never happen."
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michael.finnegan@ latimes.com
