Poll: Obama, Klobuchar have solid leads in Minnesota

President Obama and Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) hold solid leads in Minnesota, according to a new poll from the Democratic-affiliated Public Policy Polling.

Obama leads Mitt Romney by 51 to 44 percent in the state, which has long leaned Democratic at the presidential level but which former President George W. Bush made competitive in both of his elections and has trended a bit Republican in recent years because of its fast-growing evangelical Christian community.

Obama's lead doesn't seem insurmountable, but while some GOP outside groups have begun running ads in the state in recent days, Romney has not indicated any plans to compete there. Another poll out this week showed him trailing Obama by 10 points in the state.

Klobuchar leads Kurt Bills (R), a Ron Paul backer who won the GOP nomination after Paul supporters took over the party there, by a huge 55 to 36 percent margin.

The poll of 824 likely voters was conducted from Sept. 10-11 and has a margin of error of 3.4 percent.

---