LANSING, Mich. (AP) — Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama does better against Republican John McCain among Michigan voters than Democrat Hillary Rodham Clinton, according to a poll released Monday.

The poll by Lansing-based EPIC-MRA shows 43 percent of the 600 likely voters polled statewide backed Obama, while 41 percent backed McCain. Eight percent say they'd vote for independent candidate Ralph Nader, while 8 percent were undecided.

McCain leads Clinton 46 percent to 37 percent. Ten percent say they'd vote for Nader and 7 percent were undecided.

The April 4-9 poll had a margin of sampling error of plus or minus 4 percentage points.

Clinton won Michigan's Jan. 15 Democratic presidential primary after Obama and several other candidates voluntarily took their names off the ballot to appease voters in other early voting states such as Iowa and New Hampshire.

Neither candidate campaigned in Michigan before the primary. Clinton made a brief stop in Detroit on March 19 to urge new primaries in Michigan and Florida, which have been stripped of their Democratic National Convention delegates for breaking party rules by holding their primaries in January.

Although Clinton got 55 percent of the Democratic primary vote, 42 percent of those polled now say they'd rather see Obama win the Democratic nomination, while 37 percent preferred Clinton and 21 percent were undecided. Those results included both Democratic and Republican voters.

Michigan hasn't helped a Republican win the White House since it backed George H.W. Bush in 1988, and McCain could face a tough struggle even if Clinton is the nominee. Forty-three percent said they'd definitely or probably back a Democratic candidate, while 31 percent said they'd back a Republican. Roughly a quarter were undecided.

Fifty-nine percent had a favorable opinion of McCain, while 55 percent felt that way about Obama and 45 percent had a favorable opinion of Clinton. Half said they had an unfavorable opinion of Clinton, compared to 38 percent for Obama and 34 percent for McCain.

President Bush was viewed favorably by 36 percent of those polled and unfavorably by 61 percent. Only a quarter gave the Republican president a positive job rating, while 75 percent gave him a negative rating. Seventy-six percent said the country was on the wrong track, and 42 percent said they're most concerned about improving the economy and providing jobs.

Forty-five percent said they had a favorable opinion of Michigan Gov. Jennifer Granholm, while 51 percent had an unfavorable opinion. A third gave the Democratic governor a positive job rating, while 66 percent gave her a negative one.

Michigan voters remain pessimistic about the state's economy. Eighty-seven percent said it had worsened over the past year, and 26 percent expect it to be even worse a year from now. Forty-two percent said it will be about the same, while a quarter said it would be better. Seven percent were undecided.

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EDITOR's NOTE: Kathy Barks Hoffman heads the Lansing AP bureau and has covered Michigan politics since 1986.

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On the Net:

EPIC-MRA: http://www.epicmra.com