Poll gives McCain the edge in Ohio

COLUMBUS, Ohio, Sept. 21 (UPI) -- A poll of Ohio voters Sunday indicated Republican John McCain with a slight lead over Democrat Barrack Obama in the U.S. presidential race.

The Ohio Newspaper Poll calculated a 6-point edge for McCain over Obama, though a sizable 19 percent of voters said they reserved the right to change their minds before Election Day.

The polling was carried out by the Institute for Policy Research at the University of Cincinnati and surveyed 869 likely voters from Sept. 12-16. The error margin was plus or minus 3.3 percentage points.

"Even though it seems like this presidential race has gone on for an eternity, in many ways, especially in Ohio, it's just getting started," Eric Rademacher, interim co-director of the institute told The (Toledo) Blade. "When you bring the margin of error into consideration, it's certainly a very close race in the state."

Among independent voters, Obama led McCain 38 percent to 33 percent with 19 percent undecided.

The (Cleveland) Plain-Dealer said the poll indicates McCain's age was not considered much of a factor in the race; however, black voters remained committed to Obama while McCain was favored among whites.

In addition, McCain was considered to be the more seasoned candidate. whereas Obama was seen to be more in touch with the issues important to everyday voters.