1.  McCain's strong debate performance provides big bounce.  Presidential race now tied.  Heading into the final weeks of the campaign, new polls show John McCain and Barack Obama are essentially tied.

The AP-GfK Poll:  Obama 44%, McCain 43%. 

The George Washington University Battleground Poll:  Obama 49%, McCain 47%.

McCain gained dramatically after his feisty presentation in the final presidential debate.  Polls showed strong agreement that McCain did extremely well.  The Drudge Online poll found that 73% believed McCain won the debate with only 25% seeing Obama as the winner and 1% calling it a tie.

Three of four debate judges in an AOL panel awarded the debate to McCain.  Two of those three said McCain won decisively.

The new AP-GfK Poll found that McCain has gained dramatically with voters earning less than $50,000 per year; rural voters; those with less than a college education; and those who are concerned about the economy.

Nine in ten Republicans support McCain, while eight in ten Democrats back Obama.  Independents are split evenly. 

The poll found the contest was still volatile with 24% of the likely voters saying they are still persuadable.

2.  Many Senate races close.  In a joint appearance at the National Press Club, the chairman of the National Republican Senatorial Committee and the chairman of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee agreed there are many unpredictable races for the U.S. Senate.

Senator John Ensign (R-NV) said, "There's quite a few races out there that are very much in play," adding that Republicans could end up with as few as 40 seats in the Senate or as many as 46.

Senator Charles Schumer (D-NY) declined to guess how many seats Democrats would hold after the election but said, "We're feeling very good that we're going to pick up a large number of seats and have a successful election."

Schumer stated that the 2008 election, along with 1932 and 1980, is one of three "tectonic plate" elections that fundamentally change the role of government.

The website CQ, a division of Congressional Quarterly magazine, reported that Democrats could count on winning 56 seats and Republicans 40 seats in the Senate with four races, all involving incumbent Republicans, as too close to call.  If Democrats win all four of these races, they would have 60 seats, enough to invoke cloture and end filibusters against liberal legislation.

Senator Hillary Clinton (D-NY) said, "Sixty is the magic number.  If we reach 60 Democrats in the Senate, then the days of Republican obstruction are over."