“I like them both,” said Ann Powers, 63, a coordinator for special-education programs in Fort Dodge, Iowa. “I just think he is too inexperienced and she’s dealt with more in the last 20 years.” Billie Stimoff, a 72-year-old retiree from Kodak, Tenn., said, “It’s time to see what a woman can do because men sure have made a mess of things.”

The national telephone poll was conducted Feb. 20-24 with 1,115 registered voters, including 427 Democratic primary voters and 327 Republican primary voters. The margin of sampling error is plus or minus three percentage points for all voters, plus or minus five percentage points for Democratic voters and plus or minus five percentage points for Republican voters.

The poll showed Republicans settling in with their likely nominee. Eight in ten said they would be satisfied if Mr. McCain wins their party’s nomination, although just 3 in 10 said they would be very satisfied. Nearly 9 in 10 said he was prepared for the presidency and more than 8 in 10 said they had confidence in his ability to deal with an international crisis, while a remarkable 96 percent said he would likely make an effective commander in chief.

But misgivings remain among those who describe themselves as conservative Republicans, with a majority of those voters saying his positions on the issues are not conservative enough.

On the Democratic side, primary voters indicated they saw few substantive differences between their candidates on issues like the war in Iraq and health care. Most Democratic voters have confidence in both candidates to handle the economy, the war in Iraq and an international crisis. And large numbers think it is likely that either candidate would make an effective commander-in-chief.

Mr. Obama’s advantages are more apparent on other measures. Nearly 6 in 10 say he has the best chance of beating Mr. McCain, double the numbers who believed Mrs. Clinton was more electable. He is also viewed by more Democratic voters as someone who can bring about “real change” in the way things are done in Washington and is willing to compromise with Republicans “the right amount” to get things done.

Democratic voters are also more likely to say Mr. Obama cares a lot about them, inspires them and can unite the country. Sixty-three percent of Democratic voters said he cares a lot about them, while fewer than half think Mrs. Clinton does. Nearly seven in 10 say he inspires them about the future of the country; 54 percent say Mrs. Clinton does. Three-quarters say he would be able to unite the country as president; 53 percent say Mrs. Clinton would.