this morning on "world news now," the candidates kick off a fresh week of campaigning with a new poll showing a much tighter race. and the running mates are getting ready for their first big face-off now just three days away. it's monday, october 8th. >> announcer: from abc news, this is "world news now." >> is it friday yet? >> wishful thinking. not even close. >> good monday morning, everybody. i'm paula faris. >> happy columbus day, everybody. i'm rob nelson. 29 days and counting now. we'll get the latest from the campaign trail including a star-studded obama event in just a moment. also coming up, that nationwide meningitis outbreak spreads as the number of cases spread. more people infected and some died from this.