Even though the American mainstream media pronounced Friday’s presidential debate between Barack Obama and John McCain a draw, the UK’s Guardian newspaper tallied up some poll results and found that Obama has gained an edge over McCain as the candidates head into their final month of campaigning.


The Guardian:

Barack Obama is opening a clear lead over John McCain after polls at the weekend showed the public overwhelmingly awarding Friday night’s presidential debate to the Democratic candidate.

[…] With five weeks until the presidential election, Obama appears to have broken the impasse that had seen the two in a dead heat in polls over the past month.

A USA Today poll, published yesterday [Monday], showed 45% of those questioned felt Obama had done better in the debate than McCain, who registered 34%. The public view is at odds with the media, which overwhelmingly judged it to be a draw.

Other polls, including the Rasmussen tracking poll, showed voters drifting towards Obama. The Rasmussen poll put Obama on 50% and McCain on 44%, which would give the Democratic candidate a landslide victory.

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