Obama leads McCain solidly in two national polls

THE POLL: Fox News/Opinion Dynamics, national presidential race among registered voters

THE NUMBERS: Barack Obama 46 percent, John McCain 39 percent

OF INTEREST: Obama's lead in this poll is about the same as in late September. Having Joe Biden as Obama's running mate makes people 11 percentage points likelier to support the Democrats, while McCain's choice of Sarah Palin is an 8-point drag on the Republican ticket. Half say the economy is the election's top issue, with no other problem coming close. More trust Obama than McCain with handling the economy, 50 percent to 35 percent, including a majority of independents. More view Obama favorably than unfavorably by 26 points; the difference is half that for McCain. More expect Obama than McCain to win the election by a 3-to-1 margin.

DETAILS: Conducted Oct. 8-9 by telephone with 900 registered voters. Sampling error margin plus or minus 3 percentage points.

MORE: http://www.foxnews.com

THE POLL: Newsweek poll, national presidential race among registered voters

THE NUMBERS: Barack Obama 52 percent, John McCain 41 percent

OF INTEREST: A month ago, Obama and McCain were tied at 46 percent apiece in this poll. Whites and independents are about evenly split, while Obama leads among both sexes and every age group, including those 65 and over. Four in 10 think McCain's campaign has been too negative, four times the number who say so about Obama's. The Democrat has a solid lead as the candidate who'd do better with the economy and the financial crisis, and the one likelier to bring change. Thirty-four percent say Sarah Palin, the Republican vice presidential candidate, makes them likelier to vote for McCain while 64 percent say she does not.

DETAILS: Conducted Oct. 8-9 by telephone with 1,035 registered voters. Sampling error maring plus or minus 3.7 percentage points.

MORE: http://www.newsweek.com

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