Clinton cruising toward Pennsylvania win: polls

Hillary Clinton is cruising toward a win in Tuesday’s nominating contest in the crucial blue-collar state of Pennsylvania, polls suggested.

Democratic White House hopeful Hillary Clinton is cruising toward a win in Tuesday’s nominating contest in the crucial blue-collar state of Pennsylvania, polls suggested.

After weeks of hard-fought politicking, Clinton led rival Barack Obama with 52 per cent of likely voters saying they would choose the former first lady, over 42 per cent for the Illinois senator seeking to become American’s first black president according to a Suffolk University poll released on Monday.

A separate survey showed a smaller margin but also found Clinton had increased her edge over the weekend, gaining two points to boost her lead over Obama by 48 per cent to 42 per cent, according to a Newsmax/Zogby poll.

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Obama lost one point of support and undecideds dropped by two points, but the figures still kept Clinton’s edge over Obama within the Newsmax/Zogby poll’s four percentage point margin of error.

Despite showing a larger edge for Clinton, the Suffolk University poll showed mixed sentiment among voters when it came to who would ultimately become the next president, with 42 per cent choosing Obama and 32 per cent Clinton, regardless of whom they personally supported.

Fourteen per cent said they believed the presumptive Republican nominee would win the White House, while 12 per cent were undecided. While pundits have said Clinton needed a strong, 10-point margin of victory to keep her presidential hopes alive, some analysts said the protracted Democratic battle for the party’s nomination spelled trouble.