New poll has Romney ahead in New Hampshire

CONCORD, N.H., Dec. 5 (UPI) -- Republican presidential hopeful Mitt Romney holds a sizable lead over his rivals in New Hampshire with a new poll indicating he is the most electable candidate.

Romney, former governor of neighboring Massachusetts, has the support of 37 percent of likely voters, nearly twice that of Sen. John McCain of Arizona at 20 percent and more than double the support for former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani at 16 percent, the Washington Post-ABC News poll showed Wednesday.

Likely voters in New Hampshire see Romney as the strongest candidate with ideals closest to the Republican party's core values, the poll indicated.

Romney also outpaces his rivals on key issues such as abortion, the economy, healthcare and immigration, but lags behind McCain and Giuliani on Iraq and terrorism.

Romney faces a challenge from rival Mike Huckabee, the former governor of Arkansas, who is emerging as the leader in Iowa, making New Hampshire pivotal to Romney's strategy for securing the nomination.

The Washington Post-ABC News poll was conducted by telephone between Nov. 29 and Dec. 3 among 488 likely voters in the New Hampshire Republican primary. The results contain a 4.5-point margin of error.