The New Hampshire primary is fast approaching – its on the 10th – and Ron Paul is experiencing positive news; his campaign is surging in New Hampshire, at least according to a Washington Times/JZ Analytics Poll taken on Wednesday. While Romney sits quite comfortably ahead, polling at 38%, Paul holds 24% to Santorum’s 11 and Gingrich’s 9.

Campaign Chairman Jesse Benton had this to say:
“On the heels of his close third place finish at the Iowa Caucus, Ron Paul is polling a strong second place in New Hampshire. From here on out, it is a two-man race between Ron Paul and Mitt Romney given that one of the tickets out of Iowa was a dead-end due to Rick Santorum’s glaring lack of viability,”

Personally, I expect a Romney win, a Paul second, and Santorum third. I expect Santorum’s campaign will begin to really lose its steam – his issues will now be brought to light and he’ll experience harsh criticisms for the first time – but I’m not sure if this drop will happen before or after New Hampshire. Santorum’s numbers have risen in New Hampshire, but I expected them to be slightly higher after his performance in Iowa. In fact, when I looked at the Washington Time’s article I was quite suprised Santorum was sitting only at 11.

One thing is certain though; a two man race between Romney and Paul is likely in the makings, and I wonder what would result. The candidates are staring into the face of of a GOP electorate that is continuing to catapult candidate after candidate to top tier status and is wary of Romney.

The following image shows the full results:

More can be read at:
http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2012/jan/5/santorum-gets-big-bounce-new-hampshire/?page=all#pagebreak