(Angus Reid Global Monitor) - Republican John McCain is now ahead of Democrat Barack Obama in the United States presidential race, according to a review of four voting intention surveys conducted over the past nine days. 48.3 per cent of voters would support the Arizona senator, while 45.3 per cent would back the Illinois senator.

In one of the recent polls, McCain surpassed the 50 per cent mark. More than six per cent of respondents remain undecided, or would vote for other candidates.

All of these surveys were conducted during or after the Republican National Convention, which was held from Sept. 1 to Sept. 4 in St. Paul, Minnesota. McCain has gained 5.5 points since the last ARGM Poll Average, while Obama is down by 3.5 points.

On Sept. 4, McCain accepted his party’s nomination, declaring, "We lost the trust of the American people when some Republicans gave in to the temptations of corruption. We lost their trust when rather than reform government, both parties made it bigger. (...) We’re going to recover the people’s trust by standing up again to the values Americans admire. The party of Lincoln, Roosevelt and Reagan is going to get back to basics."

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

National Vote - 2008 U.S. Presidential Election

Contenders: John McCain (R), Barack Obama (D)

(4) TNS / ABC News / Washington Post - Telephone interviews with 961 registered American voters, conducted from Sept. 5 to Sept. 7, 2008. Margin of error is 3.1 per cent.
(3) Opinion Research Corporation / CNN - Telephone interviews with 942 registered American voters, conducted from Sept. 5 to Sept. 7, 2008. Margin of error is 3.1 per cent.
(2) Gallup / USA Today - Telephone interviews with 823 likely American voters, conducted from Sept. 5 to Sept. 7, 2008. Margin of error is 3.1 per cent.
(1) CBS News - Telephone interviews with 734 registered American voters, conducted from Sept. 1 to Sept. 3, 2008. Margin of error is 4 per cent.

Archive Search

Over 19,600 Polls
Search the Angus Reid Global Monitor Polls & Research archive.