Normally I'd say polls shmolls...well, I wouldn't really say anything that lame, though the sentiment fits...but it's interesting that Obama holds a double-digit lead over McCain in Wisconsin, considered a "battleground" state in November.

The inaugural poll by the UW-Madison Department of Political Science/WisPolitics.com--taken immediately after Hillary Clinton suspended her campaign--shows Barack Obama leads John McCain by a 13-percentage point margin in the Badger state.  50 percent of respondents said that if the election were held today they would vote for Obama, to 37 percent for McCain.

Wisconsin was a key battleground in the presidential contests of 2000 and 2004 and saw extraordinarily tight contests in both years.  Al Gore beat Bush by 5,708 votes in 2000 (0.2 percent), and John Kerry defeated Bush by 11,384 votes in 2004 (0.38 percent).

"One of the striking results in this poll and consistent with other survey work I have done in the state, the Democrats now enjoy a major advantage in party identification," said UW-Madison political scientist Ken Goldstein.  In both 2000 and 2004, party attachments in the state were virtually identical. 
 

Also notable:  Democrats with favorable views of Clinton were as favorable toward Obama and as likely to vote for him, as were those less supportive of Clinton.  Seems contrary to the picture media pundits have been painting.  Go figure.

The poll is the first in a series of at least three UW-Madison Department of Political Science/WisPolitics.com will generate this general election season.