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Florida has the third highest Jewish population in the United States, and Obama, who is hoping to become the first black president, is struggling to win over Jewish voters amid suggestions he is more pro-Muslim than pro-Israel.
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MIAMI AFP)---Six months before the US election, the battle for Florida has begun, with all three White House hopefuls heading south to woo Cuban-Americans and Jews in a state still haunted by 2000's disputed vote.
"Florida would be essential to helping assure winning 270 electoral votes," the number needed to secure the presidency in November, said Harold Ickes, one of Democrat Hillary Clinton's strategists.
In a reflection of the importance of the US's most southern state, Clinton, her rival for the Democratic nomination Barack Obama, and Republican presumptive nominee John McCain have all made trips here in the past week.
Florida has the third highest Jewish population in the United States, and Obama, who is hoping to become the first black president, is struggling to win over Jewish voters amid suggestions he is more pro-Muslim than pro-Israel.
Aside from McCain's attacks on his offer to talk to US enemies such as Iran and Syria, the Republican Jewish Coalition ran ads in three major newspapers in south Florida attacking Obama's "dangerously naive foreign policy thinking."
Obama has stepped up his declarations of support for Israel recently, and spoke Thursday at a synagogue in Boca Raton, just north of Miami.
"Just because I am open to talks with Iran does not mean I am not pro-Israel," he told a meeting at Bnai Torah Synagogue.
"I know how much Israel craves peace and as president I pledge to make every effort to help achieve that peace and support Israel's right to exist and be safe," he said.
A poll published Thursday suggests he is right to be worried about Florida.
According to the Quinnipiac University, McCain is leading Obama 45 to 41 percent in Florida, whereas Clinton is leading McCain 48 to 41 percent.
