A new poll from CNN and the University of New Hampshire shows former President Trump retaining a large lead in the Republican presidential primary here, but also found plenty of New Hampshire voters haven't made their final decisions.
With the primary now roughly two months away, the poll found 42% of likely Republican voters surveyed backing Trump. An additional 20% said they support former UN Ambassador Nikki Haley, and 14% supported former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie.
Trump's lead among self identified Republicans stands at more than 3 to 1 in the poll. But the poll found the top three GOP candidates locked in a dead heat among independent voters.
The poll also indicated many primary voters have yet to fully commit to their choices. Only about half said they had definitely settled on which candidate to vote for. Certainty levels among registered Republicans was a bit higher at 59%, while among undeclared voters 42% said they were certain of their choice.
The poll also reported solid support for President Joe Biden in the state’s Democratic primary, but also found that many Democratic voters — younger voters in particular — are unenthusiastic about Biden's renomination.
The poll found 84% of likely Democratic voters approve of Biden's performance as president, and 65% would support him as a write-in candidate. Biden is not competing in the 2024 New Hampshire presidential primary, as he and other national Democrats chose to move South Carolina into the first position on the party’s nominating calendar. New Hampshire Secretary of State David Scanlan announced this week that he would set the presidential primary on Jan. 23, 2024, ahead of any other state and in defiance of the Democratic National Committee’s schedule.
Despite general satisfaction among New Hampshire Democrats with Biden’s presidency, the poll found enthusiasm for Biden as the party's nominee to be a different matter. Just 10% of Democrats under the age of 50 said they are enthusiastic to have Biden at the top of the ballot. That number climbed to 41% among state Democrats over the age of 50.
The poll found Biden far outpacing other Democrats in the presidential primary race: Minnesota Congressman Dean Phillips and author Marianne Williamson. Biden recorded 65% support in a three-way race against those two other candidates.
It also found more than half of Democrats see Biden's age as his biggest weakness.
