(Angus Reid Global Monitor) - Democrat Barack Obama and Republican John McCain are tied, according to a poll by Gallup released by USA Today. 44 per cent of respondents would vote for the Illinois senator in this year’s United States presidential ballot, while 44 per cent would support the Arizona senator.

Support for both Obama fell by two points since early June, while backing for McCain dropped by one point. Six per cent of respondents remain undecided, and five per cent would not support either of the two main contenders.

Yesterday, Obama urged for unity in the country, saying, "There is surprising consensus in this country about what needs to be done—somehow our politics prevent us from acting on that consensus. We spend an enormous amount of time talking about what separates us, along party lines, along racial lines, along economic lines, but when it comes to how we need to retool America to continue its greatness, we’ve got a lot of stuff that we can agree on."

In American elections, candidates require 270 votes in the Electoral College to win the White House. In November 2004, Republican George W. Bush earned a second term after securing 286 electoral votes from 31 states. Democratic nominee John Kerry received 252 electoral votes from 19 states and the District of Columbia.

Bush is ineligible for a third term in office. The presidential election is scheduled for Nov. 4.

Polling Data

Possible match-ups - 2008 U.S. presidential election

McCain v. Obama

Source: Gallup / USA Today
Methodology: Telephone interviews with 2,605 registered American voters, conducted from Jun. 23 to Jun. 25, 2008. Margin of error is 2 per cent.

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