Rasmussen

Two polls has former Gov. Jeanne Shaheen topping rival U.S. Sen. John Sununu, but both show significant differences in the margin.

In a Saint Anselm College poll Shaheen is leading Sununu 49 percent to 35 percent among registered voters. However, Rasmussen has Shaheen beating Sununu 50 percent to 45 percent.

A new Rasmussen Reports poll has Barack Obama with a 10-point lead of John McCain in New Hampshire.

Obama polled at 53 percent and McCain was at 43 percent in the survey of 700 likely voters.

Two recent polls with somewhat conflicting results about the presidential race in Maine are clouding the White House picture for the fall general election. On Friday, Rasmussen Reports noted that there was only a four-point gap between Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama and Republican opponent John McCain, with Obama leading 50 to 46. However, Rasmussen gives Obama a 92.9 percent chance of winning Maine’s four electoral votes. The Rothenberg Political Report, however, does not view this race as close. In data released Monday, the report puts Maine in its “Safe/Likely Obama” category.

There are two recent polls with somewhat conflicting results about the presidential race in Maine.

On Friday, Rasmussen Reports noted that there was only a four-point gap between Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama and Republican candidate John McCain, with Obama leading 50 to 46.

However they give Obama a 92.9 percent chance of winning Maine’s four electoral votes.

This was a drastic difference from Rasmussen’s August report, which had Obama leading 49 to 36.

The Rothenberg Political Report, however, does not view this race as close. In data released today, the report puts Maine in its “Safe/Likely Obama” category.

Other notes from the Rasmussen poll:

Keep an eye on Quinnipiac University tomorrow. They tend to release polls on consecutive days, so it’s likely that they’ll have head to head Ohio numbers for the presidential race on Friday morning. The last Quinnipiac poll (7/23-29) had Ohio in a statistical dead heat, with Barack Obama leading John McCain by two points, 46%-44%. A Rasmussen Reports poll a few days earlier had McCain up by ten points, 52%-42%.

A Rasmussen poll shows Sen. Frank Lautenberg hitting the 50% mark that pundits say is so crucial for any reelection effort.

The survey puts Lautenberg at 51% to Zimmer’s  33%.  That’s up two points for Lautenberg last month, when Rasmussen put him at 49% to Zimmer’s 36%.  Lautenberg is supported by 78% of the state’s Democrats, while Zimmer is backed by 72% of Republicans.  Lautenberg has a commanding lead with the state’s unaffiliated voters, besting Zimmer 45% to 28%.

Meanwhile, Barack Obama continues to have a high single-digit lead over John McCain.

A poll conducted by Rasmussen Reports shows presumptive presidential nominee Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) holding a 6 point lead over opponent Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) in Ohio.

The latest poll shows McCain with 46 percent of the vote, compared to 40 percent for Obama. This is up from the statistically insignificant one-point lead that McCain had in previous months. The telephone survey also found that 7 percent of respondents prefer a third party candidate over McCain or Obama, and another 7 percent remain undecided.

When so-called "leaners" are included into the total, McCain leads 52 percent to 42 percent in the Buckeye State.

The survey showed McCain enjoys 88 percent support from Republicans while Obama earns 74 percent support from Democrats. With leaners included, each candidate gets 3 more points within the party, but McCain's lead with unaffiliated goes from a nine-point advantage to a 23 point advantage with leaners included.

Democratic U.S. Sen. Frank Lautenberg leads Republican challenger Dick Zimmer by thirteen percentage points, 49%-36%, according to a Rasmussen Reports poll released today. A July 17, 2006 Quinnipiac poll had Republican Tom Kean, Jr. and incumbent Bob Menendez in a statistical dead heat: Kean 40%, Menendez 38%. A June 19, 2002 Quinnipiac poll had incumbent Bob Torricelli leading his GOP challenger, Douglas Forrester, 44%-36% And a July 27, 2000 Quinnipiac poll had Democrat Jon Corzine running twenty points ahead of Republican Bob Franks, 50%-30%. By Election Day, only the Corzine/Franks race was close.

Incumbent Democratic U.S. Sen. Frank Lautenberg leads Republican challenger Dick Zimmer 49%-36%, according to a Rasmussen Reports poll released today.

The poll also shows Gov. Jon Corzine approval rating at only 27%, while 40% disapprove. That’s a slight drop from last month.

The poll comes after two other recent polls from other organizations showed Lautenberg leading Zimmer by large margins, although a Rasmussen poll from early last month – just after both won their respective primaries-- showed the two in a statistical dead heat.

Patrick Murray, the Director of the Monmouth University Polling Institute, has an interesting post on summer polling in U.S. Senate races that is a must read for campaign watchers.