By JOSH BOAK and LINLEY SANDERS (Associated Press)
WASHINGTON (AP) — New Hampshire Republicans are voting Tuesday night with a desire to curb immigration and overhaul the federal government, yet they have some misgivings about former President Donald Trump and the criminal charges facing him.
There are signs that Democrats are rallying around President Joe Biden on the economy, but many have concerns about his age –- he is 81 — and his handling of the situation in the Middle East.
The findings from AP VoteCast point to some of the dominant issues that could shape the general election in November, with voters sharing which issues they care most about and how they perceive the top candidates. Even as the coronavirus pandemic has faded as an election-defining risk, the results of the survey show that the cultural and social forces from the 2020 election have endured.
AP VoteCast is a survey of more than 1,890 New Hampshire voters who are taking part in the Republican primary and 873 Democratic primary voters. The survey is conducted by The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research.
The New Hampshire primaries are unique because undeclared voters -– those not affiliated with either party -– can choose to vote for a particular party. This draws in voters who are not necessarily party loyalists. More than 4 in 10 GOP primary voters are not affiliated with a party, compared with about 2 in 10 in the Democratic primary.
The voting in New Hampshire follows last week’s Iowa caucuses, but the participation of a substantial number of undeclared voters means that the candidates are facing a different electorate.
New Hampshire Republican voters are more likely than those in Iowa to say they are political moderates. They are less likely to identify as born-again Christians. GOP voters in New Hampshire are less supportive than are Iowa Republicans of a six-week abortion ban or reducing aid for Ukraine. Only about one-half identify with Trump’s…
Read the full article here
