A WBUR/MassINC Polling Group poll released Thursday shows Donald Trump leading Hillary Clinton by 1 percentage point in the pivotal swing state of New Hampshire.

The Republican nominee garnered 40 percent support compared to Clinton’s 39 percent. Though well within the 4.4 percentage point margin of error, it’s the first time Trump has held a lead in the Granite State in polls recognized by Real Clear Politics.

Ten percent of voters said they would vote for Libertarian candidate Gary Johnson, and three percent said they preferred Green Party nominee Jill Stein. Another seven percent said they were undecided and chose another candidate.


The poll of 500 likely voters in New Hampshire, surveyed from Saturday through Tuesday, was taken in the immediate aftermath of FBI Director James Comey’s controversial letter to Congress. Despite the lack of information surrounding Comey’s letter on Friday, WBUR found it has “fed the narrative that Clinton can’t be trusted.”

Eighty-five percent of respondents said they had heard a “great deal” or “fair amount” about the recent developments, potentially related to the FBI’s investigation into Clinton’s use of a private email server.

Twenty-seven percent of those polled said they considered Clinton to be “honest and trustworthy,” while 70 percent did not trust her. According to the poll, the public trusts Trump more than Clinton, despite the billionaire’s well-documented tendency of spinning falsehoods on the campaign trail. In WBUR’s poll, 36 percent said they thought Trump was “honest and trustworthy,” compared to 60 percent who said he was not.

Recent polls have shown Clinton’s consistent lead in New Hampshire shrinking amid the recent FBI story.

As of Thursday morning, polling aggregator FiveThirtyEight said there is a 68.6 percent chance that Clinton wins in the Granite State and a two-thirds chance she wins the national election.

Beyond the presidential election, WBUR’s poll also showed Republicans in New Hampshire leading across the board.


Incumbent Republican Sen. Kelly Ayotte is six points up in her reelection bid against Democratic challenger and New Hampshire Gov. Maggie Hassan, with 51 percent of voter support compared to Hassan’s 45 percent.

In the state’s tight gubernatorial race, Republican Chris Sununu leads Democrat Colin Van Ostern, 49 percent to 44 percent.