The McCain campaign and Republicans have sought to tie Barack Obama to what they see, and what voters to see, as some unseemly associations - the community organizing group Acorn which they accuse of voter registration fraud, and the '60s-era radical William Ayers. "We need to know the full extent of that relationship," McCain said during the final debate.

But a Washington Post/ABC News poll conducted Oct. 16-18 says voters, by a 60 percent to 37 percent margin, do not believe the Ayers connection is a legitimate issue. Their judgment is closer when it comes to Acorn with voters saying by 49 percent to percent the Obama campaign's association with ACORN is a legitimate issue.