"Do you approve or disapprove of John McCain's choice of Palin as his vice presidential running mate?"

"For each item I name, please tell me if it makes you think more favorably toward Palin, less favorably, or if it doesn't change your opinion of her one way or another. . . ."

"Given what you've heard about her family situation, do you personally think Palin made the right choice or the wrong choice in agreeing to run for vice president?"

"Overall, do you think the news coverage of Palin has been fair or unfair?"

"Does John McCain naming Sarah Palin as his vice-presidential running mate make a difference in whether or not you will vote for John McCain in November?" If yes: "Does having Sarah Palin on the ticket make you more likely or less likely to vote for John McCain in November?"

USA Today/Gallup Poll. Aug. 30-31, 2008. N=2,035 adults nationwide. MoE ± 2.

"Next, thinking about the following characteristics and qualities, please say whether you think each one applies more to Barack Obama or more to John McCain. How about [see below]?"

8/30-31/08

6/15-19/08

8/30-31/08

6/15-19/08

8/30-31/08

6/15-19/08

"Do you think Barack Obama is tough enough?"

8/29-31/08

"Does having Sarah Palin as his running mate make you more likely to vote for John McCain in November, less likely, or will it not have much effect on your vote?" N=467, MoE ± 4.5 (Form A)

"Will the fact that a woman will be running for vice president with John McCain make you more or less likely to vote for McCain, or won't that make any difference to you one way or the other?" N=460, MoE ± 4.5 (Form B)

"Do you think John McCain's choice of Sarah Palin reflects favorably or unfavorably on McCain's ability to make important presidential decisions?"

"Do you agree or disagree with the following statements? . . ." Statements rotated

"From what you have heard or read, how would you rate Barack Obama's acceptance speech at the Democratic National Convention on Thursday night -- as [see below]?"

"Does what you saw or read of this week's Democratic National Convention in Denver make you more likely or less likely to vote for Barack Obama?"

"As you may know, Republican presidential candidate John McCain has selected Alaska Governor Sarah Palin as his vice presidential running mate. How would you rate John McCain's choice of Sarah Palin for vice president? Would you rate this choice as: excellent, pretty good, only fair, or poor?" N=898 registered voters, MoE ± 4

"Does having Sarah Palin as his running mate make you more likely to vote for John McCain in November, less likely, or will it not have much effect on your vote?" N=898 registered voters, MoE ± 4

8/29/08

"Based on what you know about Sarah Palin, do you think she is qualified to serve as president if it becomes necessary, or not?" N=898 registered voters, MoE ± 4

8/29/08

Excellent

Good

Just okay

Poor

Terrible

Didn't see (vol.)

Unsure

"Does what you saw or read of this week's Democratic National Convention in Denver make you more likely or less likely to vote for Barack Obama?" N=1,016 adults, MoE ± 3

8/29/08

"How would you rate Barack Obama's choice of Joe Biden for vice president? Would you rate this choice as excellent, pretty good, only fair, or poor?"

"Does having Joe Biden as his running mate make you more likely to vote for Barack Obama in November, less likely, or will it not have much effect on your vote?"

"Based on what you know about Joe Biden, do you think he is qualified to serve as president if it becomes necessary, or not?"

"Do you think Barack Obama's choice of Joe Biden reflects favorably or unfavorably on Obama's ability to make important presidential decisions?"

"Which of the following statements comes closer to your view of the fact that Joe Biden has been in the U.S. Senate for 35 years? It means that Biden has the experience needed to be a good vice president. It means that Biden has been part of the problem in Washington for so long that change would be less likely to occur."

"Which of the following statements comes closer to your view of negative comments that Joe Biden made in the past year about Barack Obama while they were both running for president? They should be taken seriously because Biden knows a lot about another senator like Obama. They should not be taken seriously because that's the kind of thing candidates say about each other."

Diageo/Hotline Poll conducted by Financial Dynamics. Aug. 18-24, 2008. N=approx. 500 registered voters nationwide.

"Which candidate -- John McCain or Barack Obama -- do you think would do the best job [see below]?"

8/18-24/08

"If Obama chooses Delaware Senator Joe Biden as his vice presidential running mate, would that make you more likely to vote for Obama, less likely, or wouldn't it make any difference in your vote?"

"When deciding your vote for president this year, do you think the vice presidential running mate will be more important to your decision than in previous years, less important or about the same as usual?"

"Are you more or less likely to vote for Barack Obama for president if he picks Delaware Senator Joe Biden as his vice presidential running mate?"

"Would Colin Powell's endorsement of Barack Obama make you more or less likely to vote for him for president?"

"How much do you think Barack Obama cares about the needs and problems of people like yourself: a lot, some, not much, or not at all?"

"How much do you think John McCain cares about the needs and problems of people like yourself: a lot, some, not much, or not at all?"

"If he is elected president, would you rather see John McCain generally continue George W. Bush's policies, change to more conservative policies, or change to less conservative policies?"

8/15-19/08

"Do you think Barack Obama's energy policies would help bring down gas prices if he is elected president, or not?"

8/15-19/08

"Do you think John McCain's energy policies would help bring down gas prices if he is elected president, or not?"

8/15-19/08

"What do you think Barack Obama has been spending more time doing in his campaign: explaining what he would do as president or attacking John McCain?"

8/15-19/08

"What do you think John McCain has been spending more time doing in his campaign: explaining what he would do as president or attacking Barack Obama?"

8/15-19/08

"As you may know, John McCain will be 72 years of age at the time of the presidential election in November. Do you agree or disagree that McCain is too old to be president?"

"Do you have a lot of confidence, some confidence, or no confidence in Barack Obama's ability to deal wisely with an international crisis?"

"Do you have a lot of confidence, some confidence, or no confidence in John McCain's ability to deal wisely with an international crisis?"

"Do you think Obama's patriotism is strong, or do you have questions about how patriotic Obama is?"

"Do you think McCain's patriotism is strong, or do you have questions about how patriotic McCain is?"

"Who do you think has the better ideas for strengthening the nation's economy: Barack Obama or John McCain?"

"Who do you think would be best at dealing with the rising gas and oil prices: Barack Obama or John McCain?"

"Who do you think has more honesty and integrity: Barack Obama or John McCain?"

"Who would be best at protecting the country from terrorism: Barack Obama or John McCain?"

"As you may know, Barack Obama has opposed the war in Iraq from the start and opposed the surge of additional troops. He said he would withdraw all American combat troops from Iraq within sixteen months. John McCain supported the war in Iraq and said the surge of additional troops has worked. He believes progress is being made in Iraq and we should stay and finish the job. Which position do you agree with more: Barack Obama's or John McCain's?"

"As you may know, in dealing with the energy crisis, John McCain favors drilling for oil off the U.S. coastline, building more nuclear power plants and giving a $5,000 tax credit to anyone who buys an energy efficient car. He also opposes imposing any new taxes on oil companies. Barack Obama opposes offshore oil drilling, favors spending more on alternative energy sources and 'green' jobs, and wants to give $1,000 energy rebates to working families, paid for by higher taxes on oil company profits. Which candidate's plan do you prefer: John McCain's or Barack Obama's?"

NBC News/Wall Street Journal Poll conducted by the polling organizations of Peter Hart (D) and Neil Newhouse (R). Aug. 15-18, 2008. N=1,005 registered voters nationwide. MoE ± 3.1 (for all registered voters).

"Now I'd like you to compare Barack Obama and John McCain on a few issues. For each one, please tell me whether you think that Barack Obama or John McCain would be better on that issue. If you think that both would be equally good or that neither would be good on a particular issue, just say so. Who do you think would be better when it comes to [see below]: Barack Obama or John McCain, or do you think that both would be equally good or neither would be good?"

"If you honestly assessed yourself, thinking in general about an African-American president of the United States, is that something you'd be entirely comfortable with, somewhat comfortable, somewhat uncomfortable or entirely uncomfortable with?"

"If you honestly assessed yourself, thinking in general about someone entering office as president of the United States at age 72, is that something you'd be entirely comfortable with, somewhat comfortable, somewhat uncomfortable or entirely uncomfortable with?"

"Regardless of whom you support, which candidate for president -- Barack Obama or John McCain -- is better qualified to deal with Russia?"

Time Poll conducted by Abt SRBI. July 31-Aug. 4, 2008. N=808 likely voters nationwide. MoE ± 3.

"Turning again to the race between Barack Obama and John McCain, which candidate -- Barack Obama or John McCain -- would best be described by each of the following statements? . . ."

"Is [see below] pretty much just another politician, or is he really a different kind of candidate?"

CNN/Opinion Research Corporation Poll. July 27-29, 2008. N=914 registered voters nationwide. MoE ± 3.

"Now I'm going to mention a few issues and for each one, please tell me if you think Barack Obama or John McCain would better handle that issue if they were elected president. . . ."

"Do you think the way the media have covered [see below] has been too positive, too negative, or about right?" Candidate names rotated

"As you may know, Barack Obama recently returned from a trip to several foreign countries. Based on what you have read or heard, do you think that what Obama did during that trip was appropriate or inappropriate for a presidential candidate?"