Clinton, Romney Lead in New Hampshire, New Poll Shows

Clinton, Romney Lead in New Hampshire, New Poll Shows (Update1)

By Demian McLean

Oct. 14 (Bloomberg) -- Senator Hillary Clinton leads among Democratic voters in New Hampshire, the state that traditionally holds the first U.S. presidential primaries, while Mitt Romney holds a narrow edge over his Republican rivals, a new poll shows.

Clinton, of New York, is backed by 41 percent of likely voters, compared with 20 percent for second-place Senator Barack Obama of Illinois, according to a poll by the Marist College Institute for Public Opinion. Former Senator John Edwards is in third place with 11 percent.

In the Republican race, former Massachusetts Governor Romney has support from 26 percent of Republicans likely to vote in the primary. That compares with 20 percent for his nearest competitor, former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani. Senator John McCain of Arizona has 17 percent and former Senator Fred Thompson 10 percent.