As the days tick down until Tuesday when New Hampshire voters hold the first presidential primary, former Gov. Mitt Romney of Massachusetts continues to lead over the pack of Republican presidential hopefuls in the Granite State.
A Suffolk University/7News two-day tracking poll of likely primary voters released on Thursday found Romney crushing the field of Republican presidential candidates with 41 percent. U.S. Rep. Ron Paul of Texas is second with 18 percent while former U.S. Sen. Rick Santorum of Pennsylvania -- who finished eight votes behind Romney in the Iowa caucus Tuesday night -- has moved up to third with 8 percent.
Former U.S. House Speaker Newt Gingrich and former Gov. Jon Huntsman of Utah are tied for fourth with 7 percent while former Gov. Buddy Roemer of Louisiana stands in sixth with 1 percent. Gov. Rick Perry of Texas and activist Fred Karger take less than 1 percent. With less than a week to go until the primary, 17 percent of likely primary voters remain undecided.
This poll makes the first time that Santorum breaks into the top three in New Hampshire -- shoving aside Huntsman who had been third in a Suffolk poll released earlier in the week.
David Paleologos, director of the Suffolk University Political Research Center, said on Thursday that the Iowa caucus -- which saw a close battle between Romney, Santorum and Paul -- is influencing New Hampshire voters.
This is the first full day that voters had the opportunity to digest the final results of the Iowa caucuses, said Paleologos. The result is that the same three winners in Iowa are the top three contenders in New Hampshire.
The poll of 500 likely New Hampshire Republican primary voters was taken on Jan. 3-4 and had a margin of error of +/- 4.4. percent.
With Romney ahead in the Granite State, the other candidates worked New Hampshire on Thursday.
Gingrich, who had gone out of his way to avoid attacking other candidates in Iowa, took aim at Romney, unveiling a new television commercial in the Granite State. In the ad, the narrator rips Romney for being timid on economics and comparing his plans to those backed by President Barack Obama.
Looking to duplicate the grassroots effort that propelled him in Iowa, Santorum campaigned in Manchester, Northfield, Tilton, Concord and Windham between media appearances, while Paul trumpeted the fact that he had won the backing of three papers in the northern part of New Hampshire.
During a busy day that featured campaign stops in Nashua and national and state media appearances, Roemer, who has focused on New Hampshire and is also running for the Americans Elect nomination, came out swinging at Obamas trade policies.
"'Made in America' is at the heart of my economic policy," said Roemer in a statement released late on Wednesday. "America, unlike our rivals, has no trade strategy.
Roemer argued that the president should begin with three actions, which were to revoke Permanent Normal Trade Relations with China ... have the Treasury Department officially designate China as a currency manipulator ... and ... pass the Currency Reform for Fair Trade Act to give American industries the means to fight back."
"China is the worst trade aggressor in the world," Roemer added. "A black hole for American jobs, a security threat. Our president needs to lead by taking these three minimum steps. He won't. I will."
Roemer will be playing up his trade policies on Monday, the day before the New Hampshire primary, with a Yankee Swap of American-made products in Manchester.
Huntsman, who has also focused on New Hampshire, also kept up a breakneck pace through the Granite State on Thursday, with town hall meetings in Durham and Newport and also campaigning in Hampton and Portsmouth.
While the other candidates continue their efforts, Paddy Power, the largest oddsmaker in Ireland, believes the primary is Romneys to lose, making the former Massachusetts governor a 1-25 favorite to win the primary on Tuesday while Santorum is second with 16-1 odds. Huntsman gets 18-1 odds while Paul stands at 20-1 and Gingrich is at 25-1. Perry is an 80-1 underdog in the Granite State.
Reach Kevin Derby at kderby@sunshinestatenews.com or at (850) 727-0859.
