Bad news for Kerry. Not death, but it will wound him.
Dean and Kerry Deadlocked in N.H. Poll
By WILL LESTER
ASSOCIATED PRESS
WASHINGTON (AP) - Democrats Howard Dean and John Kerry are deadlocked in a New Hampshire poll of likely voters in the presidential primary.
The survey by Franklin Pierce College showed Dean, the former Vermont governor, at 22 percent, and Kerry, the Massachusetts senator, at 21 percent. The poll, conducted for WNDS-TV in Derry, N.H., was taken July 20-24.
The survey also found an increasing number of undecided voters - 37 percent, up from 31 percent in May. A poll last week by the American Research Group in New Hampshire also found a spike in the undecideds, with many saying they were taking another look at the Democratic field as President Bush's approval ratings dropped and he appeared more vulnerable.
The American Research Group poll showed Kerry with a slight lead over Dean.
Only three in 10 voters in the Franklin Pierce poll said they were definitely committed to their chosen candidate.
The remaining Democratic candidates were in single digits, with Rep. Dick Gephardt of Missouri and Sen. Joe Lieberman of Connecticut at 6 percent. Sen. John Edwards of North Carolina was at 2 percent, and Sen. Bob Graham of Florida was at 1 percent. Rep. Dennis Kucinich of Ohio, Carol Moseley Braun and Al Sharpton were at zero percent.
Two unannounced potential candidates - retired Army Gen. Wesley Clark and Sen. Joe Biden of Delaware - received some support: Clark was at 2 percent, Biden at 1 percent.
New Hampshire holds the nation's first presidential primary, tentatively set for Jan. 27, 2004. Another recent poll, conducted for The Boston Herald and released last weekend, also showed Dean and Kerry essentially tied.
The Franklin Pierce poll of 500 likely primary voters had an error margin of plus or minus 4 percentage points. |
