NH voters show little interest in Senate race

As a possible GOP candidate for the U.S.
Senate, Kelly Ayotte has some cache among
Indepedent voters, according to new poll.

There is lots of blog-o-chatter about the upcoming U.S. Senate race in New Hampshire, but voters aren't paying much attention.

They're probably thinking more about all the rain that's been ruining their summah! more than they're thinking about who will succeed Republican Judd Gregg on Capitol Hill.

The University of New Hampshire Survey Center in a just-released Granite State Poll shows about 90 percent of voters are undecided about the race.

That's mostly because the race is so ill-defined at this point. Except for Democratic congressman Paul Hodes there is no one else who's announced.

Lots of attention focused on a decision by John E. Sununu, himself a former U.S. senator. But he announced yesterday he's busy with other interests and family.

Just as well, according to the survey center poll: Currently, 43 percent of New Hampshire adults have a favorable opinion of Sununu, 38 percent have an unfavorable opinion of him, 8 percent are neutral, and 12 percent don’t know enough about him to say.

In a hypothetical head-to-head between Sununu and Hodes, currently the U.S. representative from the 2nd District, 41 percent of New Hampshire likely voters say they would vote for Sununu, 43 percent for Hodes, 1 percent for some other candidate and 14 percent are undecided.

It's Kelly Ayotte, the Republican attorney general, who sparks the most -- albeit somewhat muted -- interest.

“Even though she has not run for elected office, Kelly Ayotte presents a formidable challenge for Paul Hodes,” said Andrew Smith, Director of the UNH Survey Center. “Hodes certainly has an advantage in having shown to voters and fundraisers that he can win in New Hampshire, but Ayotte has a strong positive image in the eyes of voters.”

In a Hodes/Ayotte match-up, the survey shows 39 percent of likely voters would support Ayotte, 35 percent would back Hodes, 2 percent would back some other candidate, and 24 percent are undecided. The center says Ayotte leads in part because political Independents prefer her to Hodes by 33 to 26 percent.

Ayotte hasn't said one way or another whether she's running.

As for former congressman Charlie Bass, who is also mentioned as a possible GOP candidate, 38 percent of likely voters say they would support Bass, 40 percent said they would vote for Hodes, 2 percent would chose some other candidate, and 20 percent are unsure.

The survey center updated its favorability ratings for the sitting U.S. House and Senate members:

• Democratic U.S. Sen. Jeanne Shaheen -- 50 percent of New Hampshire adults view her favorably, 36 percent view her unfavorably, and 14 percent are neutral or don’t know enough about her to say. The favorability is up from when a similar survey was done in April;
   
• Republican U.S. Sen. Judd Gregg -- 53 percent of New Hampshire residents have a favorable opinion of Gregg, 24 percent have an unfavorable opinion of him, and 23 percent are neutral or don’t know enough about him to say. His overall rating is down from April;
   
• Democratic U.S. Rep. Carol Shea-Porter -- 41 percent of adults in her 1st Congressional District have a favorable opinion of her, 30 percent have an unfavorable opinion of her, and 29 percent are neutral. That's up from April;
   
• Hodes -- 42 percent of adults in his district view him favorably, 23 percent have an unfavorable opinion of him, and 35 percent are neutral. His overall ratings are down slightly from April.