As McCain Campaigns in N.H., Obama Holds Slim Lead in Granite State Poll
(MANCHESTER, N.H.) – John McCain talks about New Hampshire a lot on the campaign trail, pointing towards his win in the primary here this year as the turning point of his campaign. He has held over 100 town halls in the state since the presidential race began. But familiarity may not breed votes.
A new poll conducted by the University of New Hampshire shows McCain and Barack Obama in tight race here, with Obama leading 46 percent to 43 percent, which is within the margin of error of 4.5 percent.
Over half of the New Hampshire voters surveyed haven't made up their minds in the presidential race, and McCain will try to make his case today. He has a town hall meeting schedule for noon in Rochester before heading to Baltimore this evening for a fundraiser.
Interestingly, swaying those voters may prove to be more difficult for the Republican McCain than in the past. Anthony Salvanto of the CBS News Election and Surveys Unit took a look at voter registration in New Hampshire and concluded that Democrats are gaining significant ground there.
"The gap between registered Democrats and Republicans in the state has narrowed considerably since 2004. Republicans still have the registration edge, but by a much smaller margin," writes Salvanto.
"In raw numbers, according to the Secretary of State, today there are 36,000 more registered Democrats in New Hampshire than the rolls showed in November 2004; and only about 2,000 additional Republicans."