Watch CBS News

Battleground State Profile: Ohio



.number_big {
font-family: arial black, arial;
font-size: 40px;
color: #44516d;
letter-spacing: -5pt;
}

.pulldown {color:#666; font-size:10px; font-family: Arial, sans; size: 1; background-color:White; }

-->

function jumpTo(URL_List)
{
var URL = URL_List.options[URL_List.selectedIndex].value;
var urlArray = new Array();
urlArray = URL.split('/');
if(URL != 0)
{
top.location.href = URL;
}
}
/-->

function vote(pollForm) {

var url = pollForm.action + "?event_id=6883";


if (pollForm.q1[1-1].checked)
url += "&q1=1";

if (pollForm.q1[2-1].checked)
url += "&q1=2";


var winname = "battleground_ohio";
var windowname = winname.replace(/ /g, "_");
var loc = "https://www.cbsnews.com/htdocs/popQuestion/framesourceTest.html?url=";
var popup = new cbsPopup('poll').open(url);
//window.open(loc+url+"&&", windowname, "width=280,height=435");
}

State Data:


2008 Primary Results:


Hillary Clinton: 54%

Barack Obama: 44%

John McCain: 60%

Mike Huckabee: 31%

Ron Paul: 5%

2004 Election Results:


George W. Bush: 50.81%

John Kerry: 48.71%

2000 Election Results:


George W. Bush: 49.97%

Al Gore: 46.46%

Racial Breakdown:


White: 84.0%

Black: 11.5%

Hispanic: 1.9%

Other: 2.6%

Income:


Under 25k: 28.9%

25-50k: 30.9%

50-100k: 30.4%

Over 100k: 9.8%

Education:


Less than H.S.: 17.1%

H.S. or Higher: 83.0%

BA or Higher: 21.1%

Grad/Prof Deg: 7.4%

Who do you think will win Ohio?


John McCain

Barack Obama

























Ohio



Peter Brown, who is the assistant director of the Quinnipiac University Polling Institute, described to the Columbus Dispatch just how important an Ohio win would be for the Obama's chances in November: "Can Democrats win without Ohio? Yes they can, but it is a very tough road," He said.

The state that became the biggest battleground in 2004 appears ready to play a similar role this November. McCain's ability to rally the Republican base will be put to the test in Ohio, as he will look to duplicate President Bush's success in racking up huge margins in the southern and Appalachian parts of the state, which allowed him to squeak out a victory against John Kerry.


The state that became the biggest battleground in 2004 appears ready to play a similar role this November.


The Republican party in the state has been pummeled by scandal over the past four years and Democrats have won all the big races there recently. Obama lost to Hillary Clinton in the state's primary partly because of his failure to win over blue-collar voters. The Democrat also faces questions about his commitment to reform free trade agreements like NAFTA, which many Ohioans believe has hurt their economy. It all adds up to the possibility of another Election Night squeaker.

CBS Evening News: McCain's Challenge In "Must-Win" Ohio

Ohio Analysis By Region

Ways To Win




Predict A Winner

Make picks for each state to build a path to electoral college victory.


Related Ohio Campaign Stories



Poll Averages




Real Clear Politics averages recent polls from a wide number of media sources, including some not recognized or used by CBS News, and shows the average lead of the top candidate.




View CBS News In
CBS News App Open
Chrome Safari Continue
Be the first to know
Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting.