Poll: Obama holds slim lead over McCain in Florida
BY BETH REINHARD
breinhard@MiamiHerald.com
A Mason-Dixon poll released Tuesday shows Democrat Barack Obama with a narrow edge over Republican John McCain in Florida, leaving the nation's largest tossup state in the hands of the 6 percent of voters who are undecided.
Obama received support from 48 percent of the voters, compared to McCain with 46 percent. Another 1 percent prefer other candidates.
Unlike other statewide surveys that show Obama on the upswing, Mason-Dixon found little change in the race over the past week.
The key to winning Florida: Tampa Bay, where Obama is leading by four percentage points, according to the poll. Obama has a nine-point advantage among independent voters, while McCain is ahead by five percentage points among Hispanic voters.
The polls also found that even though McCain is slightly behind, he is viewed favorably by more voters, while negative views of Obama have increased. Both campaigns are increasingly on the attack, with only four weeks left until Nov. 4.
The economy is the top issue for 69 percent of the voters, and less than half of those surveyed back the government's plan to rescue the financial markets, according to the survey.
A total of 625 registered voters were surveyed. The margin of error for the poll is four percentage points.
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