New poll shows McCain, Obama splitting swing states

Presidential candidates John McCain and Barack Obama are engaged in tight, hotly contested battles in four of the major swing states, according to a new poll from CNN and Opinion Research Strategies.

The poll, taken in New Hampshire, Missouri, Michigan and Virginia, shows each candidate with small leads in two states.

{mosads}McCain leads in Missouri and Virginia while Obama leads in Michigan and New Hampshire. The addition of third-party candidates does little to change the math and nothing to change the lead.

In Missouri, McCain leads Obama 50 percent to 45, and in Virginia the Arizona senator leads 50 percent to 46. Obama has invested heavily in both states, and the McCain campaign is likely happy to be at 50 percent in both.

In New Hampshire, where McCain is sometimes jokingly referred to as the third senator, Obama leads 51 percent to 45. In Michigan, a state where Obama's name was not on the ballot during the primary, the Illinois senator leads McCain 49 percent to 45.

The poll was conducted Sept. 7 through Sept. 9, after both parties' conventions. Each state has a margin of error of 3 percentage points, except New Hampshire, which has a margin of error of 3.5 percent.