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Obama sees bump among white males |
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By Ian Swanson
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Posted: 09/03/08 11:45 AM [ET] |
ST. PAUL - Barack Obama’s bump in polls since the Democratic National Convention rests largely on gains among white men, according to the Gallup polling organization.
Gallup’s poll concludes Obama has also gained on Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) among independent and Democratic women, but that McCain’s strength among Republican women has strengthened since his selection of Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin as his running mate.
Overall, however, McCain still holds a 4-point lead over the Illinois senator among non-Hispanic white women.
“It is possible, but not provable with these data, that McCain's selection of [Palin] may have had the effect of solidifying support among women of his own party,” Gallup said in a Sept. 3 release posted on their web site.
At the same time, the release said it is possible that McCain initially has lost ground among white independent women and men since the Democratic convention and his selection of Palin. McCain announced the pick one day after Democrats closed their business in Denver with a speech by Obama watched by nearly 40 million people on television.
Republicans hoped disappointed supporters of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-N.Y.) might turn to the McCain camp after the Palin pick. But Gallup’s initial polls suggest Democrats and independents who supported Clinton are not moving to McCain, and that Clinton’s own calls for her supporters to rally around Obama may have been effective.
Overall, Gallup’s latest poll shows Obama with an eight-point lead. In the average of national polls tallied by the web site Real Clear Politics, Obama has a lead of 6.2 points.
Democrats have trailed Republicans in election after election in white male voters, and Obama remains far behind McCain, according to the latest Gallup poll. But Obama has closed the gap.
In August, he trailed McCain among non-Hispanic white men by 21 points; now he is within 13 points, according to an Aug. 31-Sept. 1 Gallup telephone poll of registered voters.
McCain is hoping to close the overall gap in the next few days during the Republican National Convention, which on Wednesday and Thursday will feature speeches by Palin and McCain
Obama still holds large leads over McCain among African-American and Hispanic voters.
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