The New Nation - Internet Edition

AP, Texas

New York Senator Hillary Clinton is still leading over Illinois Senator Barack Obama in the most recent polls from Ohio and Texas. With only a little over a week to go until the March 4 Democratic primaries in both states, however, Clinton's lead appears to be shrinking. John McCain, meanwhile, appears to be the preferred candidate over either Democrat in Texas.

A poll conducted by the Associated Press Feb. 16-20 gave Clinton a 50 percent to 43 percent lead over Barack Obama in Ohio. The poll had a margin of error of plus or minus 4 percent. A large turnout of union voters in Ohio could be Clinton's ace in the hole, as she currently maintains a 15 percent margin over Obama among Democrats from union households. Interestingly, though Clinton holds the overall lead in the state, Obama held an 11 percent lead over Clinton when voters were asked who is more electable in November.

In Texas, an ABC News/Washington Post poll of Democratic votes conducted during the same time period gave Clinton only a 1 percent lead over Obama at 48 percent to 47 percent. Texas Democratic voters also believed Obama had more chance of beating a Republican nominee in November, by 47 percent to 36 percent over Clinton. The poll had a margin of error of plus or minus 4 percent. Clinton previously held a much larger lead over Obama in Texas and Ohio.

Since some of the results from both polls came after Obama's win in the Feb. 19 Wisconsin Democratic primary, they likely do not show any 'bounce' from his defeat of Clinton in that contest. A large number of undecided voters in both states could sway the race to either side depending on who manages to capture their votes before the primaries on March 4.

Among both Republican and Democratic voters, a CNN/Opinion Research Poll gave Republican candidate John McCain a lead over both Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama in the November presidential elections. If McCain is chosen as the Republican presidential nominee, 52 percent of those polled in Texas said they would vote for him over Barack Obama. Fifty-five percent of Texas respondents said they would rather vote for McCain than Hillary Clinton. The poll, conducted Feb. 14-17, had a margin of error of plus or minus 2.5 per cent.

Meanwhile, Barack Obama won the Democrats Abroad global primary in results announced Thursday, giving him 11 straight victories in the race for the Democratic presidential nomination.

The Illinois senator won the primary in which Democrats living in other countries voted by Internet, mail and in person, according to results released by the Democrats Abroad, an organization sanctioned by the national party.

Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton has not won a nominating contest since Super Tuesday, more than two weeks ago.

More than 20,000 U.S. citizens living abroad voted in the primary, which ran from Feb. 5 to Feb. 12. Obama won about 65 percent of the vote, according to the results released Thursday.

Voters living in 164 countries cast votes online, while expatriates voted in person in more than 30 countries, at hotels in Australia and Costa Rica, at a pub in Ireland and at a Starbucks in Thailand. The results took about a week to tabulate as local committees around the globe gathered ballots.

"This really gives Americans an opportunity to participate," said Christine Schon Marques, the international chair of Democrats Abroad.

Italian Sports Minister Giovanna Melandri, who has dual citizenship, cast a vote for Obama in Rome.

"It wasn't an easy choice for me. I would still love seeing a ticket with Obama and Hillary," Melandri told The Associated Press in a telephone interview. "A drive for change is what is needed in the U.S. and I think that Obama has that drive." There is no comparable primary among Republicans, though the GOP has several contests this weekend in U.S. territories, including party caucuses in Puerto Rico Sunday.

The Democrats Abroad controls seven pledged delegates at the party's national convention this summer. However, the group's system of dividing the delegates is unique, and could create an anomaly in which Obama and Clinton end up with fractions of delegates.