Obama has closed "gender gap" in NH; has overwhelming support of independent-minded voters.

[calteacherguy]

By SARAH LIEBOWITZ
Monitor staff
December 14. 2007 12:41AM

Barack Obama has come from behind to turn the Democratic presidential race in New Hampshire into a toss-up, according to a new Monitor opinion poll. The results - which show Obama with a one-point edge over Hillary Clinton - mirror other polls released this week, indicating that Clinton's once-imposing lead has evaporated in the run-up to New Hampshire's Jan. 8 primary.

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Of the likely Democratic primary voters surveyed for the Monitor poll, 37 percent aren't registered with a political party. When it came to those undeclared voters, Obama trounced his opponents: 40 percent of undeclared voters likely to vote in the Democratic primary backed Obama, compared with 23 percent for Clinton and 13 percent for former North Carolina senator John Edwards.

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For Rhonda Ashley of Contoocook, Obama will be the first Democrat she's supported in a recent presidential election. In 2000, she backed McCain in the state's primary; in 2004, she voted Republican. Obama "has an enthusiasm that I don't see in any of the other candidates," Ashley said. As for Clinton, "I feel like Hillary will go wherever the polls tell her to go."

Apart from undeclared voters, Obama now draws considerable support from women. Of the female, likely Democratic voters surveyed, 34 percent say they'd choose Obama, compared with 32 percent for Clinton. Female voters have widely been considered a key demographic for Clinton, the former first lady and U.S. senator from New York.

http://www.concordmonitor.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20071214/FRONTPAGE/712140350

[Elspeth]

1. Guess Oprah did the trick

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