Presidential candidates take last lap

WASHINGTON -- Democratic Sen. Barack Obama, seeking a history-making victory in a presidential campaign that has captivated the country as few others ever have, maintained a clear advantage over Republican Sen. John McCain on Monday as the two made final appeals in battleground states and readied massive get-out-the-vote operations in advance of today's balloting.

State and national polls released Monday underscored the steep hill McCain has to climb in the final hours to reach the 270 electoral votes needed to win the White House. Burdened by President Bush's unpopularity and an economic crisis that redrew the race in September in Obama's favor, the Arizona senator sprinted through a series of critical states Monday -- all but one of which President Bush carried four years ago -- exhorting his supporters to help him defy the odds.

In Florida, McCain promised to turn the page of the era of President Bush, and he warned about his opponent's intentions. "Sen. Obama is in the far left lane" of politics, he said. "He's more liberal than a guy who calls himself a socialist, and that's not easy."

In Roswell, N.M., McCain shouted: "Stand up, stand up and fight. America is worth fighting for. Nothing is inevitable here. We never give up. We never quit. We never hide from history. We make history. Now let's go win this election and get this country America moving again."

Republican running mate Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin was even more pointed as she campaigned in Ohio. "Now is not the time to experiment with socialism," she said. "Our opponent's plan is just for bigger government."

Sen. Joe Biden, Obama's running mate, campaigned in Missouri, Ohio and Pennsylvania. "We are on the cusp of a new brand of leadership," he assured supporters.

"After decades of broken politics in Washington, eight years of failed policies from George Bush, and 21 months of a campaign that has taken us from the rocky coast of Maine to the sunshine of California," Obama said in North Carolina, "we are one day away from change in America."

Indicative of the lighter mood as campaigning came to a close, Obama offered opinions on some unusual questions in interviews released Monday. Answering questions from MTV viewers, he said he thought it a "waste of time" to try to outlaw drooping pants. "Having said that, brothers should pull up their pants," he continued. "You know, some people might not want to see your underwear -- I'm one of them."

Obama is looking not only to win the presidency but also to produce a popular vote majority, which no Democrat has done since Jimmy Carter in 1976. Carter won just 50.1 percent of the vote that year.

By invading Republican territory in the South, Midwest and Rocky Mountains, Obama also is bidding to redraw an electoral map that has been static and closely divided into red and blue states in the past two elections.

If Obama were to win, he probably would enter the White House with enhanced Democratic majorities on Capitol Hill. House Democrats are looking at the potential for a gain that could come close to equaling the 31 seats they added two years ago when they took control of both chambers. Senate Democrats are trying to add substantially to the 51 seats they currently control, with reaching 60 not out of the question.

The Washington Post-ABC News tracking poll showed Obama leading by nine percentage points -- 53 percent to 44 percent.

Some other national polls also showed a small tightening in the margin between Obama and McCain. Obama's lead varies from 5 points to 11 points in about a dozen national polls released Monday. But in almost every case, the Democratic nominee had a clear lead and at least 50 percent support. That means McCain not only has to win virtually all the undecided voters but also peel away some voters who currently say they support Obama.