New Polls, Primary Dates Turn Up Heat in ’08 Race

JUDY WOODRUFF:

New Washington Post-ABC News polls out this week show that both the Democratic and Republican campaigns for president are tightening up in Iowa.

For the Democrats, it is a statistical dead heat between the three leading candidates. Barack Obama had 30 percent of support from likely Democratic caucusgoers, while Hillary Clinton garnered 26 percent, and John Edwards had 22 percent. Bill Richardson came in fourth with 11 percent. Joe Biden, Dennis Kucinich, and Chris Dodd each poll less than 5 percent.

On the Republican side, Mitt Romney still leads the field with 28 percent of the support of likely Republican caucusgoers, but Mike Huckabee has surged into second place at 24 percent. That is a 16-point increase since July.

Behind him, Fred Thompson had 15 percent, and Rudy Giuliani 13 percent. John McCain, Ron Paul, Tom Tancredo, and Duncan Hunter each polled 6 percent or less.

For more on the campaigns and the new primary dates, we turn to Dan Balz of the Washington Post.

Dan, hello, and let me first ask you about New Hampshire's secretary of state making it official today. They will hold their primary on January the 8th. It's just five days after the Iowa caucuses. What does that say about the relative importance of these two states?

DAN BALZ, Political Reporter, Washington Post:

Well, I think, Judy, that these two states are likely to be as important as they've ever been, certainly on the Democratic side. There's been so much attention that the Democratic candidates are giving to Iowa that that looms as the single biggest event on their calendar.

The Republican race, there is some competition in Iowa, as our poll shows. There's a great deal of competition in New Hampshire. And I think those two states in both those races will, as they have traditionally done, set the table for what comes after that.