Ohio, Pennsylvania may hold key to White House

Source: Xinhua | 11-04-2008 07:50

WASHINGTON, Nov. 3 (Xinhua) -- With Election Day only some 24 hours away, both U.S. presidential campaigns are focusing on Ohio and Pennsylvania as the pivotal states, U.S. media reported Monday.

U.S. Republican presidential candidate John McCain speaks at a campaign rally at Pennridge Airport in Perkasie, Pennsylvania on Nov.2, 2008. (Xinhua/AFP Photo)

Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama and Republican vice presidential choice Sarah Palin crisscrossed Ohio on Sunday, while Republican candidate John McCain returned to Pennsylvania, the Los Angeles Times said.

The Washington Post said both campaigns expect a close finish in Ohio, something of a paradox in a struggling state in a year in which the poor economy is driving support for Obama and other Democrats.

Ohio lost 300,000 manufacturing jobs this decade and its median income has dropped by 3 percent, yet polls show Obama with no more than a narrow lead in a state that John F. Kerry lost to George W. Bush by two points in the last presidential election.

The NBC said Obama is hoping for a win in Ohio, but not desperate for one.

The Democrat has spent more time in Ohio than any other state since winning the nomination, but it is a state he does not necessarily have to win.

A loss in electoral-rich Ohio, and even one in Pennsylvania, could be offset by wins in places like North Carolina, Virginia, and Indiana.

The Wall Street Journal quoted McCain campaign manager Rick Davis as saying that Pennsylvania, won by Kerry in 2004, will be the most important state to watch Tuesday.