Illinois Polls: Barack Obama Maintains Stranglehold over John McCain

The state of Illinois is a huge prize to the winner come November in the presidential election. With a victory comes the state's 21 electoral college delegates. Illinois proves pivotal in the election as it obtains the most delegates in the Midwest and the fifth most in the nation, only behind California, Texas, Florida, and New York. Now that Barack Obama has defeated Hillary Clinton for the Democratic nominee for president, he is set to face off against the Republican nominee of John McCain for the White House.

In the latest poll conducted by Survey USA released in March, Barack Obama holds a lead of 29 percentage points over John McCain with 60 percent saying they would vote for Obama whereas only 31 percent surveyed saying they would vote for the Republican nominee McCain. Even with 9 percent undecided, the gap is currently a large task for McCain. Not surprisingly, Obama appeals greatly to black voters with 90 percent of those surveyed choosing the Democratic nominee. Independents overwhelmingly preferred Obama, with 60 percent picking him compared to 21 percent for McCain.

Despite the overwhelming lead, Obama recently spoke at the Apostolic Church of God in Chicago on Father's Day. McCain was last in Illinois for a fund raiser in Chicago on March 14. However, both candidates will not campaign as often in Illinois as other states in the near future, because of the recent polls validating what was perceived already as a safe win for Obama.

There are many hurdles to overcome if McCain aims to win Illinois in November. Illinois has quickly become one of the most Democratic states in the Midwest. In 2000, John Kerry triumphed over George W. Bush by 11 percentage points, despite winning far less of the counties. This is due to the large Democratic African American vote in Chicago. Also, despite the state acting as the birthplace to Hilary Clinton, Obama bested Clinton in the Democratic primary by a huge margin of 32 percentage points.

Overall, Illinois was not competitive in March, not competitive now, and has little chance of staying competitive in November. With Barack Obama able to call Illinois his home state, his popularity among fellow black voters, and the support from the majority of Independents in the state, his win in Illinois over John McCain seems inevitable once November rolls around.