No surprises in Illinois as the home state Senator Barack Obama remains comfortably ahead of his Republican presidential rival John McCain.
The latest Rasmussen Reports telephone survey of voters in the state shows Obama attracting 56% of the vote while McCain earns 40% (see crosstabs) . Those results are little changed from last month when Obama held a fifteen point advantage.
Fifty percent (50%) of Illinois voters say that local reporters will try to help Obama win the White House while 8% believe they will try to help McCain. Thirty-three percent (33%) believe the media will try to remain neutral and offer unbiased coverage. These figures are similar to perceptions on a national basis.
This past week has been very positive for Obama as he steadily gained ground on McCain in the Rasmussen Reports daily Presidential Tracking Poll. He also regained a slight advantage in the Electoral College projections. Consumer confidence fell sharply during the week and the shift in focus to economic issues benefitted Obama.
McCain has the support of 88% of Illinois Republicans, while 91% of the state’s Democrats are backing Obama. The Democrat has a twenty-one point advantage among unaffiliated voters.
Obama’s is viewed favorably by 66% of Illinois voters while McCain earns positive reviews from 53%.
As for the running mates, 63% have a favorable opinion of Delaware Senator Joe Biden while 50% say the same about Alaska Governor Sarah Palin.
Rasmussen Markets data shows that Obama is currently given a % chance of winning Illinois’ 21 Electoral College votes this fall. Not only is the Democratic Presidential nominee a longtime Illinois resident and the state’s junior U.S. senator, Illinois, one of the most reliably Democratic states in the Midwest. It has gone for the party’s presidential candidate in the last four elections, including John Kerry who carried it by 10 points in 2004.
See survey questions and toplines. Crosstabs available for Premium Members only.
This telephone survey of 500 Likely Voters was conducted by Rasmussen Reports Septemer 17 2008. The margin of sampling error for the survey is +/- 4.5 percentage points with a 95% level of confidence.
See Methodology.
|
Illinois Trends: McCain vs. Obama |
||
|---|---|---|
|
Date |
McCain |
Obama |
|
11/01/2008 |
38% |
60% |
|
39% |
56% |
|
|
40% |
56% |
|
|
38% |
53% |
|
|
37% |
50% |
|
|
Favorable Ratings for Presidential Candidates in Illinois |
||
|---|---|---|
|
McCain |
Obama |
|
|
Very Favorable |
27% |
52% |
|
Somewhat Favorable |
22% |
11% |
|
Somewhat Unfavorable |
20% |
11% |
|
Very Unfavorable |
28% |
24% |
|
Not Sure |
2% |
2% |
|
Rasmussen Reports - Electoral College Balance of Power Summary |
|
|---|---|
|
160 |
|
|
260 |
|
|
118 |
|
Rasmussen Reports is an electronic publishing firm specializing in the collection, publication, and distribution of public opinion polling information.
The Rasmussen Reports ElectionEdge™ Premium Service for Election 2008 offers the most comprehensive public opinion coverage ever provided for a Presidential election.
Scott Rasmussen, president of Rasmussen Reports, has been an independent pollster for more than a decade.
