Early exit polls leaked to Internet bloggers yesterday that showed John Kerry leading in key battleground states set the financial markets on a downward course yesterday. Those early exit poll numbers later proved to be wildly inaccurate. The Wall Street Journal says the stock rally that "began last week hit electoral head winds yesterday, as reports about early exit polls sent a wave of last-minute jitters through the market." The Dow Jones Industrial Average, "which had surged 304 points, or 3.1%, over the previous five sessions, rose 78.60 points in the morning, but finished the day down 18.66 points, or 0.19%, at 10035.73." A late-day bounce "kept the broad Standard & Poor's 500-stock index just slightly in the black. After a strong start, it finished ahead by a barely perceptible 0.03 point at 1130.54, managing to record its sixth consecutive day of gains." The Nasdaq Composite Index "finished ahead 0.25%, or 4.92 points, at 1984.79, down just under 1% on the year."

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