President Obama takes a question in Elkhart, Indiana, Monday where he said doing nothing was not an option.

ELKHART, Indiana (CNN) — Seeking to rekindle last year's election magic, President Obama traded the beltway for the heartland Monday, hitting the road to make the case for his controversial $800 billion stimulus package in a part of the country particularly hard hit by the economic downturn.

Watch: 'We can't afford to wait,' the Pres. says

Addressing a raucous, campaign-style town hall meeting in Elkhart, Indiana, Obama warned that the road to economic recovery would take years, and that a failure to pass an effective stimulus plan quickly could result in an "economic crisis as deep and as dire as the Great Depression."

The downturn could become a "crisis that at some point we may be unable to reverse," Obama told a packed high school gymnasium. "We can't afford to wait."

Elkhart has seen its unemployment rate triple to more than 15 percent over the past year. The city's jobless rate is roughly double the national average; a number of the nation's top recreational vehicle makers are located in Elkhart, and hundreds of workers at those plants have lost their jobs.

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Then-Sen. Obama spoke with Sam and Dannielle Ericson while canvassing for votes in Elkhart, Indiana last May. Obama will return to the town as president on Monday.

(CNN) — President Barack Obama's no stranger to Elkhart, Indiana, where he's holding a town hall meeting today to promote his plan to stimulate the economy.

Obama made a short stop in the northern Indiana city in early May, when he was battling Hillary Clinton for his party's presidential nomination. Clinton narrowly edged Obama in the primary, but she ended up dropping out of the race for the White House a month later.

Obama returned to Elkhart and held a rally in the northern Indiana city in early August, when he was fighting Republican Sen. John McCain for the presidency. Obama edged out McCain by 1 percentage point in the general election, becoming the first Democratic presidential candidate to win the state since 1964.

Elkhart's unemployment rate topped 15 percent in December, about triple what it was a year ago. The city's jobless rate is about double the national average — a number of the nation's top recreational vehicle makers are located in Elkhart, and hundreds of workers at those plants have lost their jobs.

Indiana Governor Mitch Daniels.

(CNN) — CNN projects that Republican Gov. Mitch Daniels will win re-election in Indiana.

CNN projections are based on actual results and exit poll data from areas where Daniels is expected to do well.

(CNN) – Voting machine problems and some delays are reported in Lake County, Indiana, just across the state line from Chicago.

Damian Rico, communications director for the city of East Chicago, Indiana, said at one precinct in Riley Park, two machines were down for about 15 minutes when the polling place opened. Both machines are up and running now.

County election director Sally La Sota was not aware of any major problems, other than long lines.

The county is expected to vote heavily for Democrat Barack Obama. There is a significant black population and the county is just southeast of Obama's hometown of Chicago. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, Lake County has a 26% black population, 13.9% Hispanic population.

Statewide, officials say there are no significant problems. Jim Gavin, communications director for the Indiana Secretary of State, said there were long lines statewide but no issues that he was aware of.

(CNN) – A CNN poll of polls released Saturday suggest the presidential race may be tightening in Pennsylvania — a state John McCain’s campaign has made a top target in the campaign’s closing days.

Sen. Barack Obama’s lead over Sen. John McCain in Pennsylvania stands at eight points, according to CNN’s latest poll of polls in the state. Fifty-one percent of likely voters in the state back Obama while 43 percent back McCain. Six percent are undecided. CNN’s previous Pennsylvania poll of polls, released October 30, showed Obama leading McCain by 11 percentage points – Obama had 53 percent support and McCain had 42 percent.

The race in Indiana is tied in CNN’s latest poll of polls in the historically Republican state. Both nominees have the support of 47 percent of likely voters in Indiana, with 6 percent are unsure about their choice for president. In CNN’s previous Indiana poll of polls, released October 30, McCain had a one-point advantage over Obama – 47 percent to 46 percent.

In Florida, Obama is ahead of McCain by four points. The Illinois senator garners support from 49 percent of likely voters in the state and 45 percent support the Arizona senator. Six percent of likely Florida voters are unsure about who should be the next president. In CNN’s October 31 Florida poll of polls, Obama was ahead of McCain by 3 points – 48 percent for Obama and 45 percent for McCain.

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Sen. Biden took a shot at Sen. McCain during a campaign stop in Indiana Saturday.

EVANSVILLE, Indiana (CNN) – The morning after Joe Biden told reporters he hoped John McCain would finish the campaign with a positive tone — “his strength” — the Delaware senator said he doesn’t remember a presidential campaign ending so viciously.

“In my view, over the last few weeks, John McCain’s campaign has gone way over the top,” said Biden Saturday at an outdoor rally on Evansville’s Main Street. “They are trying to take the low road to the highest office in the land. It’s not only George Bush’s economic policies that John McCain has bought hook, line and sinker. He’s also bought Karl Rove’s brand of political tactics.”

“It is disappointing, I never thought I’d see this from a McCain campaign,” Biden continued. “They’re calling Barack Obama every name in the book. They are going out in a way that I don’t recall it being more personally vicious.”

As a supporter yelled, “They’re scared!” the Delaware senator predicted that the tone would get worse in the last three days.

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Concerns about voter registration forms submitted by ACORN in Indiana have led Indiana's Secretary of State to ask for a criminal investigation of the group.

(CNN) — Indiana's secretary of state has requested a criminal investigation into the embattled community organizing group ACORN, which is accused of submitting hundreds of bogus voter registration forms in northern Lake County.

Watch: Drew Griffin on ACORN in Indiana

The request is based on Secretary of State Todd Rokita's preliminary examination and analysis of 1,438 questionable voter registration applications ACORN submitted in the county, which includes the city of Gary. Rokita, a Republican, has concluded there is "significant, credible evidence" that ACORN violated Indiana and federal law.

Read: Rokita's request to prosecutors

"This is a fraud perpetrated on all of the people of Indiana, because fraudulent registrations are the first step in diluting the voice of honest voters and rendering an inaccurate tally on Election Day," Rokita wrote in his request to state and federal law enforcement officials.

In response, ACORN said, "We believe the law requires us to turn in every card."

The group, which is the target of intense GOP attacks, says it flagged questionable registration forms collected by its canvassers. The group has been criticized for submitting phony forms in several states — many of which are considered battlegrounds in next week's presidential election.

But Rokita said ACORN should have turned the documents over to law enforcement, not registrars.

"Complying with the law to submit legitimate applications does not allow ACORN officials to evade the law against knowingly submitting fraudulent applications," Rokita wrote.

ACORN said Rokita "appears to have changed his opinion on this question two weeks before the election."

The group said it detailed its quality control procedures and said that election officials in Lake County had refused the group's documentation flagging applications the group considered questionable and refused to meet with ACORN to discuss how to handle the applications ACORN had flagged. It also said it looked forward to cooperating with Indiana authorities in prosecuting employees "who have defrauded us" by filing faked forms.

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Residents in Florida have run into long lines as they vote early.

(CNN) – November 4 is still more than a week away, but voters are already encountering long lines in their efforts to vote early.

Callers to CNN’s voter hotline have reported long lines in Gary, Indiana. James Brown, a Gary resident, told CNN that there were only two machines available to cast ballots at the city’s courthouse for the 25-40 people who were there with Brown when he went to vote early.

A local official told CNN the problem is not limited just to Gary. “There are long lines everywhere,” said Ruth Anne Hoagland of the Lake County Elections and Registrations Board. “They are out the door.” Hoagland also said that turnout has been strong during early voting and voters should expect at least an hour wait.

Another Lake County election official told CNN that early voting centers in Gary and other parts of the county need more computers to check voter registrations. The official assured CNN that the issue would be resolved by Election Day.

Florida, ground zero for many concerns about voting irregularities during the 2000 presidential race, is also experiencing long lines during early voting. One caller to CNN’s hotline reported that her 85-year-old mother encountered a four-hour wait to vote in Broward County. CNN’s John Zarella found similar problems. Watch Zarella’s report about long lines in Broward on the first day of early voting.

Related: Long lines, glitches reported in early voting

If you have any problems or concerns about voting, CNN would like to hear about them. Call CNN’s voter hotline at 1-877-GOCNN-08 (1-877-462-6608) to report your problem.

John Mellencamp joined Sen. Obama at an Indiana campaign event in April.

(CNN) – Sen. Barack Obama’s latest pitch to Indiana voters: hometown rocker John Mellecamp.

The Illinois senator’s campaign has launched a radio spot there that features the state’s favorite son and longtime Obama supporter.

“I’ve seen a lot of small towns, but now I’m seeing small towns across America dying,” Mellencamp says in the ad. “Folks losing their jobs and their homes… eight years of George Bush have really hurt. And – John McCain is just more of the same.”

Click here to listen to the ad

Last week, the Republican National Committee’s independent expenditure unit announced that it was re-directing its advertising efforts to focus on traditionally Republican states including Indiana.

In CNN’s last Indiana poll released on October 7, 51 percent of likely voters supported Sen. John McCain and 46 percent backed Obama. Pres. Bush won the state by 21 points four years ago and Democrats have not carried the state since 1964.

Questions have been raised about voter registration forms in Lake County, Indiana that were submitted by the group ACORN.

CROWN POINT, Indiana (CNN) — More than 2,000 voter registration forms filed in northern Indiana's Lake County by a liberal activist group this week have turned out to be bogus, election officials said Thursday.

The group — the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now, or ACORN — already faces allegations of filing fraudulent voter registrations in Nevada and faces investigations in other states.

And in Lake County, home to the long-depressed steel town of Gary, the bipartisan Elections Board has stopped processing a stack of about 5,000 applications delivered just before the October 6 registration deadline after the first 2,100 turned out to be phony.

"All the signatures looked exactly the same," Ruthann Hoagland, a Republican on the board. "Everything on the card filled out looks exactly the same."

The forms included registrations submitted in the names of the dead — and in one case, the name of a fast-food restaurant, Jimmy Johns. Sally LaSota, a Democrat on the board, called the forms fraudulent and said whoever filed them broke the law.

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Related: Officials raid ACORN's Las Vegas office

Obama makes major gains on the new CNN Electoral Map.

WASHINGTON (CNN) – Polls in five key battleground states in the race for the White House released Tuesday suggest that Sen. Barack Obama is making major gains.

The CNN/Time Magazine/Opinion Research Corporation polls of likely voters in Indiana, New Hampshire, North Carolina, Ohio and Wisconsin reflect a significant nationwide shift toward the Democratic presidential nominee.

Check out the latest CNN Electoral Map

In Indiana, 51 percent of likely voters say Sen. John McCain, R-Arizona, is their choice for president, with 46 percent backing Obama. Indiana went for George W. Bush by 21 points four years ago; the Democrats have not carried the state since 1964.

Obama has made significant strides in New Hampshire, a state which is credited with reviving McCain’s GOP primary campaign in both 2000 and 2008. Fifty-three percent of the state’s likely voters are backing Obama, while 45 percent are supporting McCain. Obama’s eight-point lead is larger than the five-point lead held by Obama in the last CNN New Hampshire poll taken in the beginning of September.

Bush squeezed out a slender one-point win in the state in 2000 — but four years ago, John Kerry narrowly carried the one-time GOP stronghold.

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(CNN) – As the general election campaign officially gets under way, a new poll suggests that Sens. John McCain and Barack Obama are running neck-and-neck in Indiana.

In a Howey-Gauge survey of likely voters in the state, McCain has support from 45 percent of those polled, Obama from 43 percent, and 12 percent are unsure about their choice for president.

The poll of 600 likely Indiana voters was conducted August 29-30 and has a margin of error of plus or minus 4.1 percentage points making the race a virtual tie.

The poll does not, however, necessarily suggest that Indiana will be a battleground in the fall campaign.

"The important thing to note is that the poll was conducted entirely after the Democratic convention, and entirely before the GOP convention began. So this may represent Obama's high-water mark in Indiana," said CNN Polling Director Keating Holland. "The real test of whether Indiana is in play will have to wait for polling that reflects the effects of both conventions."

The CNN Election Express is heading across the country.

ABOARD THE CNN ELECTION EXPRESS IN ILLINOIS (CNN) — We’re heading west, making our way through what can safely be considered Obama Country.

The Democrat’s presumptive presidential nominee also has a day job, and that’s Senator from Illinois. Before that Barack Obama was a longtime state lawmaker here, and prior to that he was a community organizer in Chicago.

We’ve been driving through a number of crucial battleground states on our way from DC to Denver, site of the Democratic National Convention, but this isn’t one of them. Vice President Al Gore won Illinois by double digits in 2000, Senator John Kerry took the state by double digits four years ago, and Obama’s expected to easily win his home state this time around.

While there’s not that much electoral drama in Illinois, it’s a different story in the two states we just passed through. Indiana’s a traditional red state that Obama would like to turn blue. And Michigan’s a state that's gone for the Democrats in the past two presidential elections, but John McCain would like to turn it red.

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CNN=Politics Daily is The Best Political Podcast from The Best Political Team.

(CNN) — In the latest episode of CNN=Politics Daily, Jessica Yellin reports on a new, bestselling book and the goal of its author — to defeat Sen. Barack Obama, the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee.

The Obama campaign announced Wednesday that former Virginia Gov. Mark Warner will deliver the keynote address at the Democratic Convention in Denver.  Senior Political Analyst Bill Schneider takes a look at what the choice of Warner says about the Democrats' plans to contest Virginia.

As the CNN Election Express heads towards Colorado, Tom Foreman reports on the contest shaping up in Indiana, another battleground state.

Finally, Senior Political Correspondent Candy Crowley talks with Suzanne Malveaux about Obama, Mark Warrner, Colin Powell and Oprah Winfrey.

Click here to subscribe to CNN=Politics Daily.

CNN=Politics Daily is The Best Political Podcast from the Best Political Team.

(CNN) – It was a split decision — with a substantial win for Sen. Barack Obama and a razor-thin victory for Sen. Hillary Clinton — in the North Carolina and Indiana Democratic primaries.

In the latest episode of CNN=Politics Daily, Senior Political Analyst Bill Schneider breaks down exit polling data from Tuesday by age, race, and gender.

Suzanne Malveaux was with the Clinton camp on primary night, and has an inside look at the candidate’s next moves. Will Clinton fight to have the Florida and Michigan delegations seated? How will the New York senator raise the money she needs to continue her battle against Obama and his fundraising juggernaut? What arguments is she readying for her party’s superdelegates? Malveaux has all the answers – straight from sources inside the Clinton campaign.

Despite Clinton’s commitment to soldier on through the remaining contests, the math of the Democratic Party’s proportional pledged delegate allocation is working against her. Chief National Correspondent John King uses CNN’s “Magic Wall” to explain Clinton’s uphill battle to secure the delegates necessary to claim the nomination.

The next Democratic contest is in West Virginia, and CNN’s Jim Acosta is already on the ground there. Acosta takes a look at the demographics and issues in the state before Clinton and Obama face off there.

Finally, in a special post-primary version of his “What if?” series, CNN Special Correspondent Frank Sesno takes a look at what might happen at the Democratic convention if Democrats have not settled on a nominee before the party gathers in August.

Click here to subscribe to CNN=Politics Daily.

CNN projects that Hillary Clinton wins Indiana primary

Track county-by-county results here.

(CNN) – Gary, Indiana Mayor Rudy Clay defended the decision to hold back primary results in Lake County until more than 11,000 absentee ballots were tallied.

“We don’t want to present figures to anyone that’s not correct,” Clay, the county Democratic chairman and a Barack Obama supporter, told Wolf Blitzer shortly before CNN called Indiana for Hillary Clinton. “We’re counting them as we speak. This should all be over shortly.”

The county went for Obama, but not by a wide enough margin to erase Clinton’s narrow lead. With 99 percent of the vote counted, CNN projects that Clinton wins Indiana's Democratic primary.

Watch CNN Political Researcher Alan Silverleib on Tuesday's exit polls.

(CNN) — Watch CNN Political Research Alan Silverleib as he speaks with CNN.com's Melissa Long and gives a historical perspective to Tuesday's exit polling data.

Watch Bill Schneider on Tuesday night's exit polling data.

(CNN) — Watch CNN Senior Political Analyst Bill Schneider break down exit polling data about whether supporters of Sen. Hillary Clinton would support Sen. Barack Obama if he wins the Democratic nomination and vice versa.

Watch John King break down different regions of Indiana and North Carolina.

(CNN) – Watch Chief National Correspondent John King use CNN’s Magic Wall to explain how the demographics in certain parts of Indiana and North Carolina may favor Sen. Hillary Clinton or her rival Sen. Barack Obama in Tuesday’s primaries.