Opinion

John Sununu appeared Tuesday on the Mark and Danielle show and said the following:

While I'm curious whether my colleague Andy Smith's next Granite State Poll will confirm recent Rasmussen and ARG polls, another number buried deep in the crosstabs may prove of more lasting value.

"Party ID," or the way that respondents identify themselves to pollsters, will give us an early indication of whether 2008 could be a "correction election," in which New Hampshire voters move back toward the Republicans after a big Democratic year; or whether voters simply pick up where they left off in November 2006.

So I'm scanning the headlines on the DRUDGE REPORT thisClegg's ad on the Drudge Report afternoon and what do I see at the top of the page?

A click on the picture of the jammin' congressman from the 2nd Congressional District brings you to a "survey" on the Bob Clegg for Congress website:

The survey has five questions on Congressman Hodes' use of "franked" mailings, including this one:

Here's a review of the state Senate playing field as we begin the summer.

The races are divided into five categories: Strong Democratic, Lean Democratic, Toss-up, Lean Republican and Strong Republican.

Let's start with the Democrats:

So much for Jeb Bradley and Charlie Bass being the only "rubber stamps" to hold office in New Hampshire.

Is there a silver lining to losing six seats and the majority in the state Senate? New Hampshire Republicans hope so. It's true that they have to defend fewer seats, which might leave more money to spend on offense. It's also arguable that after the shellacking they took in 2006, only the strongest GOP senators remain.

And finally, it's true that the more seats you have to defend, the more likely it is that the ball may take some unexpected bounces. All this gives the Republicans some hope if (and it's a big if) the electoral winds stop blowing in their faces this fall.

And don't forget to vote on this week's Cartoon Caption Contest. Voting ends this Friday at noon.

Now that filings are complete, let's take a look at the field of play in the state Senate.

We're keeping an eye on 11 races as election season begins. Republicans hold five, Democrats hold six. Two are open seats, nine will be defended by incumbents. The other 13 seats are unlikely to become competitive because of the partisan tilt of the district, the presence of a strong incumbent, or both. As campaigns develop, we will revisit the list from time to time.

Entering the home stretch of the 2008 filing season, we can take the pulse of New Hampshire's Grand Old Party with four numbers: 2-6-7-18.

Those are the numbers of four state Senate districts for which there are currently no GOP challengers.