"Obama is losing some of the glamour he once had, so today it's not as close as it once was between Obama and McCain," Jones said, predicting that gap will close again in Utah if Obama is the Democratic nominee.

But Clinton won't be able to do much better in Utah, the pollster said. "Unless things change very much, she won't run as high," Jones said, citing the unpopularity in the state of her husband, former President Bill Clinton, as well as her personality.

Clinton's spokesman in Utah, Donald Dunn, said he wasn't surprised more Utahns were backing McCain but suggested his numbers should be higher.

"People will come home to roost where they're used to roosting. I think it's more telling that McCain is only at 54 percent," Dunn said.

Utah for Obama grass-roots organizer Nikki Norton agreed.

"The state is overwhelmingly Republican. I'm surprised he's not stronger," Norton said of McCain. "I think Republicans should be concerned about that. It shows that Utahns are not necessarily that committed."

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