McCain, Obama Deadlocked In Florida

September 18, 2008 5:30 p.m. EST

Tallahassee, FL (AHN) - The presidential race in the Sunshine State is evenly tied, a new CNN/Time Magazine/Opinion Research Corp. poll said on Thursday.

With only 45 days to go before election day, Sens. John McCain (R-AZ) and Barack Obama (D-IL) are deadlocked with 48 percent each. Libertarian Bob Barr, Green Party candidate Cynthia McKinney and independent Ralph Nader have a combined support of 6 percent.

"Florida is a state that would be directly affected by offshore drilling, but voters in that state may be more affected by high gas prices," CNN Polling Director Keating Holland said in a news release. "Two-thirds of all Floridians favor increased offshore drilling for oil and gas."

McCain has called for increased oil exploration in the nation's coasts while Obama favors limited offshore drilling and an approach focused on renewable energy.

Florida was the deciding state in the 2000 presidential election and one of six states with the largest number of electoral votes, 27. A candidate needs 270 out of the 538 total electoral votes from all states to win.

The poll was conducted among 907 registered voters in the state from Sept. 13-16. The margin of error is 3.5 percent.