FOX News poll: Obama leads McCain

WASHINGTON, Oct. 11 (UPI) -- Sixty-one percent of voters interviewed for a FOX News poll said they believe Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., will be the next U.S. president.

In the poll released Friday, 18 percent said they believe Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., will win the presidency, FOX News reported.

When it came down to who they actually intend to vote for, the race was much closer, said Opinion Dynamics, the polling group that conducted the survey for FOX News.

Of the 900 voters polled Oct. 8-9, 46 percent said they would vote for Obama while 39 percent support McCain -- virtually the same results as a poll conducted Sept. 22-23, FOX News said.

The most recent poll, which has a 3-point margin of error, was held after the town-hall style debate Oct. 7.

In that poll, Obama bested McCain 50 percent to 35 percent as the candidate voters most trust to handle the faltering economy, with those polled saying the economy is the single most important issue in the election.