Latest New Hampshire poll numbers (04/24/10)

  We have some new poll numbers in for New Hampshire and it is shaping up to be an interesting and exciting election in just a few months.

  Governor Lynch’s approval rating is down to 44% with 42% disapproval. This is a huge drop off in the governor’s popularity as he has always had approval ratings that hover anywhere between the lower and upper 60’s. He has fallen fast in just the last several months.

  This means that Governor John Lynch– while still the frontrunner– could be beatable this year.

The governor out-polled Stephen, 47 to 36 percent; Kimball, 47 to 35 percent; and Testerman, 47 to 29 percent

  Still a nice lead for the governor against the three vying Republicans, but he is under 50% against all of them. After beating the incumbent in a tight race to win for the first time, Governor Lynch has won re-election twice with about 75% of the vote each time. This appears as if it is going to be a much tougher fight for re-election this year; the three Republicans still suffer from name recognition problems, once the campaign begins in earnest and the people realize who the candidates are and what they stand for I think this race will tighten up even more.

  In the second congressional district– which is being vacated by Paul Hodes as he runs for Judd Gregg’s vacated senate seat– Republicans looked poised to recapture that seat. The man that Paul Hodes beat to win that seat– Charlie Bass– is vying for the seat and he leads Katrina Swett by a 47-32 percent margin.

  Meanwhile in the second district– my district– the race is considerably tighter with GOP frontrunner Frank Guinta beating Carol Shea-Porter by 46-45%. Carol Shea-Porter is only viewed favorably by 41% of those polled, this could help her opponent down the road if her approval rating stays this far under 50%.

  There are several other Republican candidates running for both of these congressional seats but the poll did not include them. The poll also didn’t cover the senate race, so I have no numbers about what is going on there. Republicans have won seven out of the last eight special elections and it looks like that trend may continue in November.