U.S. Pres. Race Now in Dead Heat
The national conventions of the two main U.S. parties signal the official beginning of the U.S. presidential election.
As the race for the Oval Office is in a statistical dead heat, Democratic candidate Barack Obama and Republican candidate John McCain are expected to begin their presidential race on the same starting line.
As the first black presidential candidate in American history and using the messages of change and hope, Obama had dominated the presidential campaign since January, when the Democratic primaries began. But with Obama flip flopping recently, the slow-paced but resolute McCain has almost closed the gap.
The latest Reuters/Zogby phone survey shows McCain leads Obama 46 percent to 41 percent. The joint poll was conducted Thursday through Saturday last week on 1,089 registered voters.
According to the U.S. political Web site RealClearPolitics, McCain has overtaken Obama in the electoral count 274-264. In the RealClearPolitics Electoral College, 270 electoral votes are needed to win.
The latest Wall Street Journal/NBC News poll found 45 percent favoring Obama and 42 percent McCain. A slew of polls also show Obama has a slight lead.
The Obama camp, however, is on the defensive.
In addition, with 30 percent of voters who backed Hillary Clinton in the primaries rejecting Obama, achieving party unity is another big hurdle facing the Obama camp.
Believing that McCains negative campaign is a reason for his rising momentum, the Obama camp is going tit-for-tat.
Targeting McCain, Obama said Tuesday, One of the things we must change is the idea that people cant disagree without challenging each others character and patriotism.
Another wild card is who will be the two candidates` running mates as vice president. Both parties are keeping their selections secret until the last moment to boost their momentum.
Reports have listed three prospective running mates for Obama: Delaware Senator Joseph Biden, Virginia Governor Tim Kaine and Kansas Governor Kathleen Sebelius.
Traders on the prediction market InTrade gave Biden, the Democratic Partys top foreign policy expert, a 38.5 percent chance of being named Obama`s vice president.
For the Republican Party, the list includes former Massachusetts governor and former candidate for the Republican presidential nomination Mitt Romney, independent Connecticut Senator Joe Lieberman and Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty.
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