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Polls put Obama ahead in U.S. election

GAP FILL: Put the words into the gaps in the text.

steam / recent / ever / race / stages / knowing / lead / rival / questioning / praised / hit / events / underdog / negative / support / serve

The U.S. Presidential election is reaching its final __________ and a new poll puts Barack Obama ahead. The __________ Reuters/C-SPAN/Zogby poll puts the Democrat candidate ten points ahead of his Republican __________ John McCain. Pollsters say Obama leads McCain by 52 per cent to 42 per cent in the __________ for the White House. Not only do the statistics say Obama is ahead, they also suggest his __________ is getting bigger every day. Pollster John Zogby said: "Obama just keeps growing. He has expanded his lead among almost every major voting group. McCain seems to be out of __________ for the moment." Polls are not always accurate and there is still no way of __________ for sure who is in the lead, and by how much. Americans vote on November 4th in one of the most exciting elections __________.

Recent __________ have helped Obama’s campaign. Perhaps the biggest boost was Colin Powell giving his __________ for Obama. Powell, who served under George W. Bush as Secretary of State, said he did not like McCain’s negativity. He __________ Obama for his intelligence and said he could be a “transformational president”. Powell also cast doubts on Sara Palin’s readiness to __________ as vice-president. Ms Palin has __________ the headlines in recent days and created __________ publicity. The Republican Party revealed it spent $150,000 on clothes for Palin. Many Americans are __________ this type of spending, especially in the present economic climate. John McCain claims he likes nothing more than being the __________. From the recent polls and events, he needs to use all his political skills in the run-up to election day.

 

 
ANSWER:

The U.S. Presidential election is reaching its final stages and a new poll puts Barack Obama ahead. The recent Reuters/C-SPAN/Zogby poll puts the Democrat candidate ten points ahead of his Republican rival John McCain. Pollsters say Obama leads McCain by 52 per cent to 42 per cent in the race for the White House. Not only do the statistics say Obama is ahead, they also suggest his lead is getting bigger every day. Pollster John Zogby said: "Obama just keeps growing. He has expanded his lead among almost every major voting group. McCain seems to be out of steam for the moment." Polls are not always accurate and there is still no way of knowing for sure who is in the lead, and by how much. Americans vote on November 4th in one of the most exciting elections ever.

Recent events have helped Obama’s campaign. Perhaps the biggest boost was Colin Powell giving his support for Obama. Powell, who served under George W. Bush as Secretary of State, said he did not like McCain’s negativity. He praised Obama for his intelligence and said he could be a “transformational president”. Powell also cast doubts on Sara Palin’s readiness to serve as vice-president. Ms Palin has hit the headlines in recent days and created negative publicity. The Republican Party revealed it spent $150,000 on clothes for Palin. Many Americans are questioning this type of spending, especially in the present economic climate. John McCain claims he likes nothing more than being the underdog. From the recent polls and events, he needs to use all his political skills in the run-up to election day.