Obama favored over McCain in world poll

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WASHINGTON, June 13 (UPI) -- U.S. polls indicate a tight race between Sen. John McCain and Sen. Barack Obama but international surveys indicate Obama is heavily favored.

In 21of 24 nations polled by the Pew Global Attitudes Project, respondents said Obama, D-Ill., and the presumptive Democratic nominee, would more likely "do the right thing regarding world affairs" than his presumptive GOP challenger John McCain, R-Ariz., USA Today reported Friday.

"Obama obviously has an appeal that has crossed the waters," said Andrew Kohut, who oversaw the Pew survey. "Some of it may have to do with his being associated with opposition to the war in Iraq ... Some of it may have to do with his charismatic qualities and the fact that he's different than the typical American presidential candidate."

Obama was viewed in most countries as more trusted than U.S. President George Bush, the survey indicated. In France, where Bush visited Friday, 84 percent of respondents said they had some or "a lot" of confidence in Obama to do the right thing in world affairs, compared to 13 percent who said Bush would.

In 20 nations, more say U.S. foreign policy would improve when the new president takes office. Only Jordan, Pakistan, Egypt and Lebanon indicated it would worsen.