Barack Obama and Mitt Romney were heading to key swing states Tuesday after a fiesty final presidential debate, as the battle for undecided voters heats up two weeks ahead of election day.
The focus will likely return to the economy as the two campaign in the key battlegrounds expected to decide the election, with the president speaking in Florida and Ohio and his Republican rival heading west to Nevada and Colorado.
Post-debate polling suggested Obama had bested his opponent, but analysts said the election was unlikely to turn on foreign policy and would instead come down to a street-by-street push for every last swing state voter.
Chris Arterton, a professor of political management at George Washington University, said both Obama and Romney had performed well in the debate but that the "ground game" in closely fought states would be decisive.
"We're really down to both sides mobilising whatever resources they have to get their voters to the polls," he told AFP.
"Oftentimes, it is the person talking to somebody that they know, or somebody in their neighbourhood that can have a decisive influence on how that person votes," he said.
{{/usCountry}}"Oftentimes, it is the person talking to somebody that they know, or somebody in their neighbourhood that can have a decisive influence on how that person votes," he said.
{{/usCountry}}