With the midwest containing a number of battleground states, I’ve frequently looked at the states making up the Big Ten Conference, finding a growing lead for Obama in the region. There is even one poll which specifically looks at the Big Ten. When the first Big Ten poll was released on September 18, Barack Obama and John McCain were in a statistical tie. A follow up poll today shows Obama leading through out the region:
Illinois: Obama 61%, McCain 32%
Indiana: Obama 51%, McCain 41%
Iowa: Obama 52%, McCain 39%
Ohio: Obama 53%, McCain 41%
Michigan: Obama 58%, McCain 36%
Minnesota: Obama 57%, McCain 38%
Pennsylvania: Obama 52%, McCain 41%
Wisconsin: Obama 53%, McCain 40%
It is no surprise that early battle grounds such as Iowa, Michigan, and Wisconsin are now strongly for Obama. McCain’s recently rumored Pennsylvania strategy also appears difficult based upon this poll, but as McCain does need to try to take a large blue state Pennsylvania very well might be his best chance.
I was surprised by the size of the leads in Ohio and Indiana. If Obama really is leading in those states by such a margin he could be on his way towards a landslide. Seeing margins of this size makes me somewhat skeptical of their results, but a comparison with their September results does show a remarkable change.
