LOS ANGELES, June 6 (UPI) -- More than 60 percent of the Latino voting bloc favor Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., over Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., in the general election, a poll indicates.
A Gallup Poll summary of surveys in May indicated the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee claims 62 percent of registered Latino voters nationwide, compared to 29 percent for McCain, the GOP's presumptive candidate, the Los Angeles Times reported.
Other polls showed Obama with a double digit lead. The pro-Democratic group Democracy Corps collected surveys from March through May that indicated Obama held a 19-point lead among Latinos. A Los Angeles Times poll published in June showed Obama led McCain among California Latinos by 14 points.
Republican strategists said McCain's numbers among Latinos are disappointing and below goals his campaign set in the belief that McCain could challenge the traditionally Democratic-leaning demographic, the Times said.
"If the McCain people don't realize they need to beef up that operation, then clearly he's not going to be president," said Robert de Posada, a Republican consultant on Latino politics.
