Two polls show Clinton leading Obama in state

One poll shows a statistical dead heat in Ohio for the general election.

By DAVID SKOLNICK

VINDICATOR POLITICS WRITER

Hillary Clinton is ahead of Barack Obama in the Buckeye State heading into next week’s presidential primary, according to two polls.

Also, one poll shows a statistical dead heat in Ohio for the general election in match-ups between John McCain, the presumed Republican presidential nominee, and Clinton and Obama.

Obama is gaining on Clinton in a Quinnipiac University Polling Institute poll released Monday, but still trails by 11 percentage points. Clinton is leading 51 percent to 40 percent among likely Ohio Democratic voters who will cast ballots in next Tuesday’s primary.

This compares with a 55 percent to 34 percent lead in a Feb. 14 poll by the institute, based in Hamden, Conn.

“Clinton’s lead remains substantial, but the trend line should be worrisome for her in a state that even her husband, former President Bill Clinton, has said she must win,” said Peter Brown, the institute’s assistant director. “A week is an awful long time in politics to be playing defense.”

Clinton is leading Obama by 8 percentage points, 47 percent to 39 percent, in an Ohio Poll, conducted by the Institute for Policy Research at the University of Cincinnati and released Monday. This is the first presidential poll conducted this year by the institute.

The Ohio Poll was conducted from Thursday to Sunday via telephone of 529 likely Democratic voters in the state. The margin of error is 4.3 percent.

Quinnipiac polled 564 likely Ohio Democratic voters over the telephone between Feb. 6 and 12 with a margin of error of 4.1 percent.

The poll also asked Democrats how they view their party’s two presidential candidates.

Obama is viewed favorably by 64 percent of likely Democratic primary voters and unfavorably by 16 percent. Clinton is viewed favorably by 76 percent of likely Democratic primary voters and unfavorably by 17 percent.

The Ohio Poll found McCain with a lead of 35 percentage points, 55 percent to 20 percent, over Mike Huckabee among likely Republican voters in the state.

With McCain on his way to capturing his party’s presidential nomination, Quinnipiac didn’t conduct a poll in Ohio on the Republican primary.

But Quinnipiac did ask Ohioans about potential November general election match-ups in its latest poll.

The Quinnipiac poll asked 1,748 likely Ohio voters — likely Democrats, likely Republicans and independents — about races between McCain and Clinton, and McCain and Obama.

McCain edges Clinton 44 percent to 43 percent and leads Obama 42 percent to 40 percent in Ohio. The margin of error on those questions is 2.3 percent.

skolnick@vindy.com