RACE POLLS

Here’s what’s happening in the presidential campaigns:

Barbecue guests: People would rather barbecue burgers with Barack Obama than with John McCain. Though many are still deciding who should be president, by 52 percent to 45 percent they would prefer having Obama than McCain to their summer cookout, according to an Associated Press-Yahoo News poll released Wednesday, with men about evenly divided between the two while women prefer Obama by 11 percentage points. Whites prefer McCain, minorities Obama. And Obama is a more popular guest with younger voters while McCain does best with the oldest. One in six people saying they’d vote for McCain prefer Obama as their barbecue guest; just one in 20 Obama backers would invite McCain.

Candidates’ wives: People are divided over whether they like the wife of Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama, with 30 percent seeing her favorably and 35 percent unfavorably, according to an Associated Press-Yahoo News poll released Wednesday. They tilt positively toward the spouse of Republican hopeful John McCain, by 27 percent to 17 percent. Whites have an unfavorable view of Michelle Obama by 18 percentage points, while eight in 10 blacks like her. That is reminiscent of how Barack Obama fared in the Democratic primaries against Hillary Rodham Clinton. Whites saw Cindy McCain positively by 17 points, while one in eight blacks like her.