Poll: Romney pulling away from pack

ASBURY PARK, N.J., Nov. 29 (UPI) -- Mitt Romney has pulled significantly ahead of the rest of the Republican U.S. presidential candidates in New Hampshire, poll results released Tuesday indicated.

The Rasmussen Reports poll indicated the former Massachusetts governor is the preferred candidate for 34 percent of those likely to vote in the state's GOP primary in January. That puts him 10 percentage points ahead of Newt Gingrich, the former U.S. House speaker from Georgia who received the endorsement of The New Hampshire Union Leader this past weekend, and 20 percentage points in front of U.S. Rep. Ron Paul of Texas.

Jon Huntsman, a former Utah governor and U.S. diplomat, followed at 11 percent.

At various points in the campaign, Romney has been consistently at or near the top of the polls, with the other GOP contenders -- Texas Gov. Rick Perry, U.S. Rep. Michele Bachmann of Minnesota and Georgia businessman Herman Cain among them -- rising and falling back as their campaigns ran into various political headwinds.

The New Jersey polling company surveyed 762 likely voters by phone Monday. The margin of error is plus or minus 4 percentage points.

Rasmussen said its polling also found 20 percent of the nation's voters strongly approve of President Obama's performance while 42 percent strongly disapprove.

Rasmussen said in a hypothetical match-up with Cain, who was hit by allegations of a longtime extramarital affair on the heels of sexual harassment accusations, Obama would win by 10 percentage points, while the other GOP candidates would be within single digits. Those surveyed also are more likely to have an unfavorable view of the Occupy movement protesters and Tea Party activists (55 percent and 48 percent, respectively) than a favorable view (39 percent and 44 percent).