The consummate swing state is looking very good for Barack Obama, according to Public Policy Polling (PPP). Obama has a strong 50-39 lead over John McCain, well above the poll’s 3.5 percent margin of error.

PPP notes this constitutes a “significant change” from their Ohio poll conducted in March, which gave McCain an 8 point lead (49 percent to 41 percent) over Obama, while a Clinton/McCain matchup favored Clinton (45-44).

The new poll, conducted May 17-18, found Obama with equally strong leads among men and women, a four point advantage over McCain with white voters (46-42), and a powerful 54 point lead (75-21) among African-Americans.

Our comparison of Ohio polls in March indicated that PPP’s prediction of a 9 point margin of victory for Clinton in the primary was very close to the actual 10 point spread.

Most recent state-by-state matchups.