Quinnipiac Polls Show Barack Obama is Strong in Battleground States

After Barack Obama languished in the polls during the first weeks of September, it now appears the Democratic Presidential candidate has erased John McCain's edge in the national polls and has built leads in three important battleground states.

The most recent Gallup poll, released October 2, shows Obama leading McCain nationally 48% to 43%. However, while national polls are important in gaining a sense of overall momentum, what will really matter on November 4 is what the polls say in each state.

Florida, Ohio, and Pennsylvania are three significant battleground states where Obama has either recently gained or has solidly maintained poll leads.

Florida

Florida is one state where polling data has for months shown McCain maintaining a general, steady lead of at least 2-3 points. In fact, during the month of September, Pollster revealed Quinnipiac, one of the more oft-cited polls during this election year, had McCain ahead of Obama 50% to 43% during September 5-9 polling.

Quinnipiac now shows Obama leading McCain in Florida 51% to 43% as of September 27-29. Pollster's composite polling data from all polls as of September 30 shows Obama with a slight lead, 47.9% versus 46.4%.

Florida, by the way, awards 27 Electoral College votes.

Ohio

Ohio, a crucial battleground state that played a pivotal role in the 2004 Presidential election, has also seen Obama claim an 8-point lead. Pollster shows Quinnipiac recorded an Obama lead of 50% to 42% during September 27-29 polling.

When taking a composite of all polling data from the state, data as of October 1 on Pollster shows Obama with 47.1% lead versus 46.9% for McCain. In other words, a razor-thin 1/5th of a point divides the two candidates in Ohio when considering all polls.

It is important to note Ohio has seen a tight race over the past several months, with polls showing both Obama and McCain experiencing frequent lead changes.

Whoever wins Ohio in November, the victor will receive 20 Electoral College votes from the Buckeye State.

Pennsylvania