Poll: Dean's N.H. lead jumps to 29%

Former Vermont Gov. Howard Dean leads Sen. John Kerry by 29 percent in New Hampshire, an increase of 7 points since a similar survey last month.

Dean leads the Massachusetts senator 46-17, according to a poll released Wednesday by television stations WMUR in Manchester and WCVB in Boston. Wesley Clark had 10 percent and Connecticut Sen. Joe Lieberman 7 percent.

Trailing were North Carolina Sen. John Edwards, 4 percent; Missouri Rep. Dick Gephardt, 3 percent; and Ohio Rep. Dennis Kucinich, former Illinois Sen. Carol Moseley Braun and Al Sharpton, 1 percent each.

The number of undecided voters fell from 27 percent in November to 11 percent. Four out of five people surveyed said former Vice President Al Gore’s endorsement of Dean would have little influence on their decision.

The telephone poll of 447 likely voters was conducted Dec. 10-15 by the University of New Hampshire Survey Center. The margin of error was plus or minus 4.5 percentage points.