Over half of the American Whites consider presumptive Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama [Images] as a "risky" choice for the White House, whereas  two-thirds believe McCain as a "safe" pick, a new survey has revealed.

The survey by The Washington Post/ABC News also opens up apprehensions of the race factor being whipped up by white supremist groups as a way to stop the Illinois Senator and the first African American from entering the White House.

The survey has shown that over half of Whites called 46-year-old Obama a "risky" choice for the top post, while two-thirds said McCain is a "safe" pick -- 43 per cent of the Whites said Obama has sufficient experience to serve effectively as president, and about two in 10 worry he would over-represent the interests of African Americans.

This is a factor that the Obama campaign needs to bear in mind as it renews its effort to slug it out in states like Ohio, West Virginia and Indiana, the survey said.

Overall, 51 per cent call the current state of race relations "excellent" or "good," about the same as said so five years ago; more than six in 10 African Americans now rate race relations as "not so good" or "poor," while 53 per cent of whites hold more positive views.

But overwhelmingly nine out of ten white people have said that they are open to the idea of electing an African American to the Presidency; but fewer whites -- two thirds -- have said that they would be "entirely comfortable" with it.

But unlike in the Newsweek poll where Obama had a 15 point lead over 71-year-old McCain, The Post/ABC survey shows the Illinois Democrat leading by only six percentage points; and a toss up at 48 per cent to 47 per cent among all those who are most likely to vote.