Special Report: U.S. presidential election 2008

    BEIJING, Nov. 3 -- With just two days until the US presidential election, most national polls show Democrat candidate Barack Obama ahead of Republican candidate John MaCain by about 8 percentage points.

U.S. Democratic presidential nominee Senator Barack Obama (D-IL) speaks at a campaign rally at the Ohio Statehouse in Columbus, Ohio, November 2, 2008.  (Xinhua/Reuters Photo) Photo Gallery>>>

    Obama and McCain have campaigned hard in the key battleground states of Ohio and Pennsylvania.

    Obama and McCain hunted for support in the industrial states of Ohio and Pennsylvania in the final 48 hours of the White House race.

    Obama is playing offense in the last two days, hitting Ohio, Florida, North Carolina and Virginia.

    Polls show Obama ahead or running even in key states like Ohio, Florida, Virginia, Colorado, Indiana, North Carolina and Nevada.

    Opinion polls show McCain is struggling to defend about a dozen states won by Republican President George W. Bush in 2004.

U.S. Republican presidential nominee Senator John McCain (R-AZ) speaks at a campaign rally in Wallingford, Pennsylvania November 2, 2008.  (Xinhua/Reuters Photo) Photo Gallery>>>

    McCain's prime hope of a breakthrough in a Democratic-leaning state is Pennsylvania.

    Obama has led in every opinion poll in the state this month, although his edge has narrowed from double digits, to between 4 and 7 points.

    McCain trails Obama in every national opinion poll and in many crucial battleground states ahead of Tuesday's vote, but aides say he is closing the gap at the end of a campaign that has lasted nearly two years.

    A Reuters/C-SPAN/Zogby poll on Sunday puts Obama's national lead at 6 percentage points.

    Other recent national polls put the advantage for Obama at between 4 and 13 points, with the race holding steady.

    (Source: cctv.com)