Sanders Takes Biden-Proof Lead over Clinton in New Hampshire

Presidential candidate Bernie Sanders now boasts the support of nearly half of those who say they plan to vote in New Hampshire’s first-in-the-nation Democratic primary next year, and his lead over national front-runner Hillary Clinton has widened to 16 points, according to a new poll from CNN/WMUR-New Hampshire.

Forty-six percent of poll (pdf) respondents said that if the primary were held today, they would support Vermont Sen. Sanders, while just 30 percent said they back former Secretary of State Clinton. Another 14 percent say they would support Vice President Joe Biden, 2 percent like former Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley, 1 percent go for former Virginia Sen. Jim Webb, and less than half of 1 percent back former Rhode Island Gov. Lincoln Chafee or Harvard professor Lawrence Lessig.

The results echo other recent surveys, all of which show Sanders with a solid advantage in the Granite State.

What’s more, CNN explains, Sanders maintains a solid advantage even if Biden decides not to run: