LAT: Obama tops McCain by double-digits nationwide

An L.A. Times/Bloomberg poll released Tuesday shows U.S. Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) beating U.S. Sen. John McCain (R-Phoenix) by 12 points in a head-to-head nationwide matchup, and by 15 if third party candidates Ralph Nader and Bob Barr are included, according to a report in the L.A. Times.

The poll comes days after a Newsweek poll found a 15 point advantage for Obama among voters across the country. Both polls found evidence of an "enthusiasm gap" between the candidates:

"McCain suffers from a pronounced 'enthusiasm gap,' especially among the conservatives who usually give Republican candidates a reliable base of support. Among voters who describe themselves as conservative, only 58% say they will vote for McCain; 15% say they will vote for Obama, 14% say they will vote for someone else, and 13% say they are undecided.

By contrast, 79% of voters who describe themselves as liberal say they plan to vote for Obama.

Even among voters who say they do plan to vote for McCain, more than half say they are 'not enthusiastic' about their chosen candidate; only 45% say they are enthusiastic. By contrast, 81% of Obama voters say they are enthusiastic, and almost half call themselves 'very enthusiastic,' a level of zeal that only 13% of McCain's supporters display."

However, the Times/Bloomberg and Newsweek polls show Obama faring better than other pollsters have found. A Rasmussen poll on Tuesday found Obama with a 47 to 40 advantage over McCain, and the most recent Gallup poll has the Illinois senator edging his rival by only three points, 46 to 43.