While racehorse polling of the 20-candidate Democratic primary is grabbing most of the headlines in the Granite State, some of those same polls offer tidbits of good news for the embattled New Hampshire Republican Party.
Recent news hasn’t been great: The Democratic Party is massively outraising their Republican counterparts, with 36 times more cash on hand than the GOP. And they’re fielding a strong candidate — former Rep. Carol Shea-Porter aide Naomi Andrews — for an open GOP-leaning state house seat in Epping.
Meanwhile, President Trump’s poll numbers in New Hampshire are the worst of any “swing state,” with Trump rarely breaking the 40-percent approval mark.
Which is why New Hampshire Republicans need to grab any good news they can.
Gov. Chris Sununu Is Still Very Popular: Morning Consult’s polling continues to find that Sununu is one of the most popular governors in the country, typically coming in third behind fellow Republicans Charlie Baker of Massachusetts and Larry Hogan of Maryland. The new Emerson College poll finds Sununu with a 53-37 percent lead over potential Democratic challenger state Sen. Dan Feltes of Concord.
The Franklin Pierce/Boston Herald Poll Is Good News For Trump Fans: It’s probably an outlier, but Granite State Trump supporters can’t afford to be picky. This new poll puts Trump’s job rating at 47 percent approve, 51 percent disapprove. Sure, that’s still underwater–but it’s a lot better than the 40 approve/53 disapprove number in the new Emerson poll.
The GOP Brand Is Tied With The Democrats: A year ago, the Democratic Party had an 11-point favorable/unfavorable advantage over the GOP nationwide. Today, the two parties are tied: 45 percent approve, 52 percent disapprove. The GOP’s numbers haven’t moved. The Democrats have taken a polling dive.
The phrase “Hey, voters hate the Democrats as much as they hate us” isn’t the best rallying cry for a political party. But in the current climate, New Hampshire Republicans have to take what they can get.