A new poll shows Republican presidential candidates MItt Romney and John McCain have just about the same amount of support (32 percent and 31 percent) among New Hampshire voters two days before the state's influential primary election.
The (Reuters/Zogby) survey also put Democratic Senators Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama in a near-tie for their party's primary Tuesday in New Hampshire, with Clinton at 31 percent and Obama at 30. Former Senator John Edwards trailed at 20 percent.
Candidates appeared on national talk shows Sunday to highlight points they made in
debates the night before.
McCain, a retired Navy officer, said he was involved in the decision to change strategies in the Iraq war and said the resulting "troop surge" has turned the conflict around. Romney said McCain's plan for immigration reform grants amnesty to illegal immigrants.
And Edwards tried to place himself on a level with Obama, who won last week's Iowa caucus, saying they represent change while Clinton represents the status quo.
Former Arkansas governor Mike Huckabee, who won the Republican caucus in Iowa, told Fox News Sunday that he and McCain have both been "brutally assaulted" by Romney attack ads. He also said his party must pay more attention to middle- and lower-income people affected by the flagging U.S. economy.
Romney, the former governor of Massachusetts, told Fox News he has spent more of his personal fortune than he would like to on his campaign -- but not yet as much as he is willing to spend.
In the Saturday debates, Republicans argued about Iraq war strategy and immigration reform, while Democratic Party candidates focused on foreign policy and domestic health care.
Other states will hold primaries and caucuses in the coming weeks. The state-by-state presidential nominating process culminates with the Democratic and Republican parties' national conventions in August and September, which set the stage for the general election in November.
In New Hampshire independent voters may determine the outcome making the contest difficult and unpredictable.
Our colleague shegoftah Nasreen Queen is in Manchester, New Hampshire. She sends us two reports with analysis in details highlighting the contest in New Hampshire state
