Bill Clinton's lead may be shrinking back-home, but in Moscow the Democratic contender is firmly ahead of George Bush and Ross Perot in the U. S. presidential race, according to an informal survey conducted by The Moscow Times.


Out of 55 Americans questioned in a straw poll, Clinton took 67 percent of the vote. President George Bush trailed his opponent with 18 percent, while the remaining portion was almost evenly divided between Perot backers, those undecided, and some people who just won't vote.


The Moscow Times survey was conducted inside the U. S. Embassy, at the bar of the Radisson Slavyanskaya hotel, at the Irish Bar and over the phone, covering 4 percent of the 1, 300 Americans now residing in Moscow.


The latest Galiup poll in the United States gave Clinton 42 percent of the vote to 31 percent for Bush and 19 percent for Perot. Earlier Clinton's had been leading by as much as 19 percent.


Americans working in Moscow divide into roughly three groups: journalists, diplomats and business people. Those in the media heavily favored the Democratic challenger. Embassy personnel tended to side with the Republican incumbent, while business people were more evenly divided between the candidates.


In general, voter turnout among the 4 million Americans who live overseas is expected to be high this year, according to a recent article in the International Herald Tribune.


If the race is close, expatriate votes will potentially carry enough clout to tip the scale in favor of one of the two leading contenders.


In Moscow, Republicans, Democrats and others agreed on one point: the importance of voting in this year's election. Though thousands of miles from home, Moscow's expatriates seem deeply concerned about the country's shaky economy.


"The most pressing issue is the budget deficit", said Phillip Payette, an artist, who earns his living by working with computers. "We must clear it up. Perot seems to speak clearest. I'm not concerned about taking some hits for a few years if it means a stronger nation".


Payette wants Perot to navigate the country through the current economic storm. He feels the independent candidate's background in business will yield results.


"Hell, if we can make an actor president, we can make a billionaire president", he said.


Beth Knobel, who has a doctorate from Harvard University's Kennedy School of Government and now works for the Los Angeles Times in Moscow, is also very concerned about the spiraling budget deficit. She added that the United States is behind most of the world in its approach to health care and that she would like to see its policy changed.


"I heard (Clinton) speak last November and he understood what went wrong under Reagan and Bush", she said. "A lot of people are voting for Clinton as a way of voting against Bush. But mine is a vote for Clinton".


Helena Lamprecht, a registered Republican who works at the U. S. Embassy and has lived abroad a good portion of her life, voted Democrat for the first time in her life this year.


"I believe in Republican values", she said. "I've always believed in hard work, that nothing comes free, and that you only get what you put in. But two years into Bush's administration, I think the country is less capable of offering the brass ring".


Economics aside, Lamprecht said that Bush's track record in dealing with issues such as abortion, AIDS and minority rights also swayed her vote.


Sheldon Kirkpatrick, an embassy employee, never received his absentee ballot, but still cast his vote for George Bush through the government's provisional measures.


He feels that his personal economic situation has improved over the last few years.


"Is it the administration or just pure luck? " he asked. "There is a multitude of reasons. But I usually stick with something unless something better comes along".


David McConnel agreed. Though the deadline is approaching, he is still undecided on who to vote for.


"I haven't heard any convincing arguments for solving financial difficulties", he said. "No one is talking about the issues. I am fed up. For the first time I don't know if I'll vote at all".