POLL: Obama pulls within five points of Hillary

[jefferson_dem]

2008 Democratic Presidential Primary

March 19, 2007
The race for the Democratic Presidential nomination is getting a bit tighter. Illinois Senator Barack Obama (D) has closed to within five points of the frontrunner—Senator Hillary Clinton. A week ago, Clinton held a 12-point lead.

The former First Lady now attracts 35% of the vote down slightly from 38% last week. Obama gained four points and now is the top choice for 30% of Likely Voters. That’s the highest level of support for Obama in any Rasmussen Reports survey since the Election 2008 season began.

Former North Carolina Senator John Edwards (D) lost four points but remains in third place with 11% support. New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson (D) is up to the 5% level of support, his highest total so far. Delaware Senator Joe Biden (D) earns support from 3% of those likely to vote in a Democratic Primary.

<SNIP>

Election Polls 2008: Democratic Presidential Primary Contenders
Date Clinton Obama Edwards
3/19 35% 30% 11%
3/12 38% 26% 15%
3/05 34% 26% 15%
2/26 37% 26% 13%
2/19 28% 24% 11%
2/12 28% 23% 13%
2/05 34% 18% 10%
1/29 33% 19% 10%
1/22 31% 24% 12%
1/17 22% 21% 15%

http://www.rasmussenreports.com/Political%20Tracking/Democratic%20Primaries/DemocraticPresidentialPrimary.htm

[RiverStone]

1. Its a marathon..

And Obama more then any other candidate has been gaining ground on the (msm's) presumptive front runner in Hillary.

I'd love to see Obama (or any other DEM contender) knock HRC off her pedestal. Though right now, Obama has the momentum - the bigger question will be can he sustain the fund-raising needed to compete with the Clinton war chest?

I hope so.

GO Obama! :applause:

[Dawgs]

2. Good to see, but early.

Keep it up Obama. You da man!!

[Learn2Swim]

3. .

Nice. :yourock:

[PresidentObama]

4. Way too early. But very, very interesting turn of events.

Obama is being very competitive, and I think Edwards will get a lot more competitive soon enough. It'll be an interesting race. We don't know if the frontrunners now will be the frontrunners next year.

[vireo]

5. Edwards still seen as Iowa frontrunner

He may be running third behind Clinton and Obama nationally, but that's better than four years ago, when Edwards was a speck in polls and "10 people at a Best Western" was a good turnout, as Ed Turlington, a veteran of that effort, recalled.

Surveys show Edwards ahead in Iowa, which holds the first vote and is a crucial momentum-builder for the rapid series of contests that follow.

"Last time, the question the campaign had to answer was: 'John who?' " said Turlington, a longtime Edwards advisor. "This time there's not only high name recognition, but a base of credibility built up from before."

The crowds Edwards draws, though not the thousands packing Obama and Clinton rallies, are still impressive. Paying his 19th visit to Iowa in just over two years, Edwards attracted several hundred people at each stop, capped by a Saturday night crowd topping 500 in Burlington.

http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/politics/la-na-edwards18mar18,1,6223973.story?coll=la-news-politics-national&track=crosspromo