NM Poll: Obama, McCain in Dead Heat

Possible VPs Polled Also; Edwards, Huckabee Do Best

Illinois Sen. Barack Obama and Arizona Sen. John McCain are likely general election opponents.

SurveyUSA released a KOB-TV commissioned poll today looking at the presidential race.

The poll, vastly different from the Rasmussen poll from this weekend, shows Barack Obama and John McCain in a dead heat for New Mexico's five electoral votes.

Both candidates receive 44 percent of the vote, with 12 percent undecided, according to SurveyUSA.

SurveyUSA polled 600 registered voters  May 16 -18. The margin of error for the poll is ± 4.1 percent. SurveyUSA will poll the same matchups in 17 states; New Mexico was the first, and Pennsylvania is the second.

Interesting numbers include high percentages of undecideds among Democrats and independents. A full 14 percent of Democrats are currently undecided, while 17 percent of independents responded the same way. Only 7 percent of Republicans reported being undecided.

Also, Obama leads in Bernalillo County, where about one-third of all New Mexicans live, 47 percent to 42 percent.

The survey also began looking at potential vice presidential match-ups in the state.

Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee, former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, Sen. Joe Lieberman and Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty were all polled as potential running mates for McCain. All but independent Lieberman are Republicans. For Obama, the potential running mates were former North Carolina Sen. John Edwards, Kansas Gov. Kathleen Sebelius, Pennsylvania Gov. Ed Rendell and Nebraska Sen. Chuck Hagel. Hagel is a Republican and the rest are Democrats.

McCain polled strongest with Huckabee as his running mate. Obama polled strongest with Edwards on the ballot. This may be a function of high name recognition for the two former presidential candidates, however.

Edwards also appeared on the ballot with John Kerry in 2004.

In that election, George W. Bush and Dick Cheney defeated Kerry and Edwards by just over 6,000 votes. It was the closest margin of victory in the presidential election of any state in 2004.

Obama lost the New Mexico caucuses to Hillary Clinton by fewer than 2000 votes. The Republican primary will occur on June 3.

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