Republican presidential nominee John McCain rejected poll numbers that show him trailing Democratic rival Barack Obama and said he and running mate Sarah Palin will win the Nov. 4 election.
During an interview on NBC's "Meet the Press," McCain said his campaign is "doing fine" and said his polling numbers show him to be within striking distance of the White House.
"We've closed in the last week," McCain said. "We'll continue to be very competitive in many of the battleground states."
"Meet the Press" moderator Tom Brokaw pointed out to McCain that a recent NBC poll showed Obama to be ahead among Iowa voters.
The poll indicated that 51 per cent of voters would cast their ballots for Obama, versus 40 per cent who would vote for McCain.
McCain countered by saying poll numbers are "all over the map" and that enthusiasm at his campaign events is "higher than ever."
"This is going to be a very close race and I believe I'm going to win it," McCain said.
Those poll numbers come as an increasing number of high-profile Republicans come out in support of Obama.
Those include GOP stalwarts like former U.S. secretary of state Colin Powell and Scott McClellan, President George Bush's one-time press secretary.
Also throwing support behind Obama is long-time Republican Susan Eisenhower, daughter of the former Republican president.
"I think McCain has shown questions about his capacity to make a decision," she told CTV's Question Period on Sunday.
"His choice of Palin has been severely criticized."
Adding insult to injury, Palin is facing opposition in her own state, with Alaska's largest paper, the Anchorage Daily News, recently endorsing Obama.
As recession concerns spread, McCain is running almost an incumbency campaign, but promising strong and steady leadership for a troubled economy. Meanwhile, Obama's campaign is reminding Americans that McCain, as a senator, has voted with the George Bush White House 90 per cent of the time.
McCain used his "Meet the Press" appearance to repeat some of the major themes of his campaign, and remind voters that on that other 10 per cent of votes where he turned against the Bush administration, those votes were on important issues related to the economy, global warming and Iraq.
"I was not popular in my own party," he reminded Brokaw.
McCain's appearance came a week after former Republican Secretary of State Colin Powell used the "Meet the Press" venue to endorse Obama. He is just one of a number of prominent GOP leaders who have turned their backs on McCain in recent weeks.
The campaign is expected to heat up as it moves into its final full week before election day on November 4.
Obama released a new television ad Sunday that characterized his opponent as "out of ideas, out of touch and running out of time."
The ad, which will begin airing on national television stations Monday, charges that McCain has resorted to attempting to tarnish Obama's reputation to cover for the fact that he does not have a plan to revive the flagging U.S. economy.
Obama will spend Sunday campaigning in Colorado, where he has a slight lead over McCain in the polls.
Obama will hold rallies in Denver and Fort Collins in an attempt to win over the traditionally Republican state.
He will then move on to other key battleground states in the coming days, including Ohio, Pennsylvania, Virginia and Florida.
In Florida, Obama will campaign for the first time with former president Bill Clinton. The two will appear together at a rally.
McCain is spending Sunday in Iowa and Ohio and moving on to Pennsylvania on Monday.
With a report by CTV's Joy Malbon
