Post-debate polls find Obama still leading in 4 battleground states

Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama’s lead over GOP opponent John McCain is either increasing or holding steady in four "battleground states," including Minnesota, according to the results ofa poll released Tuesday.

Simultaneous polls conducted by the Quinnipiac University Polling Institute in Minnesota, Colorado, Michigan and Wisconsin after last week’s debate found Obama strongly in the lead in all four states.

In Minnesota, Obama had the support of 51 percent of those polled, compared to 43 percent for McCain. Those numbers compared to a similar poll taken before the debate, in which Obama led 51 to 40 percent.

Peter Brown, assistant director of the polling institute, said Obama’s lead was buoyed by the ongoing economic crisis and his strong performance in the debate.

"Sen. Obama’s leads in these four battleground states are as large as they have been the entire campaign," Brown said. "Those margins may be insurmountable, barring a reversal that has never been seen before in the modern era in which polling monitors public opinion throughout the campaign."

In Wisconsin, the poll found Obama leading McCain 51 to 43 percent, compared with 54 to 37 percent before the debate. In Michigan, Obama led 55 to 37 percent, compared with 54 to 38 percent before the debate, and in Colorado, Obama was up 52 to 43 percent — identical to his pre-debate numbers in that state.

"The only possible bright spot for Sen. McCain — and you would need Mary Poppins to find it in these numbers — is that he is holding roughly the same portion of the Republican vote," Brown said. "But McCain’s support among independent voters, a group he says is key to winning the White House, has collapsed."

Minnesota voters who watched last week’s debate said in the poll that Obama did a better job than McCain, 57 to 22 percent. And the Illinois senator’s debate performance might have benefited Al Franken, who is challenging incumbent Republican Sen. Norm Coleman for his Senate seat.

"Sen. Obama’s debate performance pushed him into a double-digit lead and made him competitive, but not yet the leader, among blue-collar workers, white men and Catholics," Clay F. Richards, the polling institute’s assistant director, said. "Obama may be exhibiting some coattail power, as Democratic challenger Al Franken now has a narrow 2-point lead over Republican Sen. Norm Coleman."