Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Barack Obama has widened his lead over Republican Sen. John McCain in New Hampshire, a new Monitor poll shows. The poll also showed Democrats holding leads in every major state race.

Likely voters picked Obama over McCain, 50 to 43 percent, giving Obama a margin that has nearly doubled from the 4-point spread shown in last month's poll. The new poll of 600 people, conducted for the Monitor Oct. 17 to 19 by the polling firm Research 2000, has a margin of error of plus or minus 4 percentage points.

Obama has solidified his support, according to the poll, with 45 percent of those polled proclaiming themselves "firm" in supporting the Illinois senator. McCain, an Arizona senator, garnered the firm backing of 40 percent of those polled. Still, 15 percent of those polled said they could change their minds, leaving the race still fluid with two weeks to go before Election Day.

The poll also details McCain's fabled relationship with New Hampshire voters, who have given the senator two unlikely primary wins, in 2000 and 2008. Forty-one percent of those polled recalled voting for McCain before, either in 2000 or 2008, including 30 percent of Democrats and 45 percent of independents. That number may demonstrate that many of those polled felt they could have voted for McCain at one point or another.

But that history doesn't necessarily mean that McCain has a deeper reservoir of good feeling in New Hampshire, at least as judged by the poll's favorability question, essentially a test of whether voters like a politician.

"I would say he's lost a lot of appeal in New Hampshire," said pollster Del Ali.

New Hampshire's numbers are about average nationally for McCain, Ali said. For example, Ali points to a recent poll he did in Wisconsin, where McCain has a net favorability of negative 1 and Obama has a net of positive 24.

Voters interviewed at random in Concord yesterday reflected that split.

Retired housewife Lois Alenson of Concord, walking through Eagle Square downtown yesterday, said she used to like McCain. "Well, so far as Republicans go, I thought he was okay. I liked him. I've changed my opinion now," said Alenson, a 76-year-old Democrat who said she will vote for Obama. "I couldn't today say I would trust his judgment."

Alenson said she finds it "horrifying" to think of McCain's running mate, Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, being a "heartbeat away" from the presidency. "They say people like this Palin because they say she's just like me," Alenson said. "I wouldn't want anybody just like me running the government."

Alenson isn't alone. Asked in the Monitor poll whether Palin's selection made them more or less likely to vote for McCain, 18 percent said they were more likely and 31 percent said they were less likely. Among independents, 13 percent said they were more likely and 37 percent said they were less likely.

Further up Main Street yesterday, Scott Leppard of Loudon carried a McCain-Palin sign toward his pickup truck. Leppard, a 39-year-old Warner police sergeant and a lifelong Republican, said he had supported McCain in both the 2000 and 2008 primaries, as well as now.

"I think McCain is a straight shooter; he speaks from his heart," Leppard said. Moreover, Leppard said, Obama lacks what it takes. "I think Obama has no experience when it comes to national security, no experience when it comes to foreign policy."

Leppard's views are also reflected in the poll. Forty-nine percent said they thought McCain would be better at handling an unexpected crisis, while 44 percent picked Obama. McCain also had an edge when asked who would say something "unpopular if right," leading Obama 42 to 41 percent.

But on Obama's plus side, voters by double-digit margins thought that Obama was more honest and trustworthy and that he had a better understanding of the nation's problems.

Leppard said he doesn't put a lot of stock in polls. "I think (McCain) holds a strong following here in New Hampshire," he said.

Other races

The poll showed Democrats holding an edge in every major state race. In the Senate race, former governor Jeanne Shaheen retains her long-held lead over Republican incumbent Sen. John Sununu, 50 to 43 percent. That race continues to tighten, however, with Shaheen holding steady at 50 percent and Sununu gaining 2 points since last month's poll.

In the House, both incumbent Democrats have widened their leads, though both fall short of the 50 percent mark seen as the key threshold of safety for an incumbent. In the 2nd District, Rep. Paul Hodes leads Republican Jennifer Horn, 49 to 35 percent. Both Hodes, a Concord lawyer, and Horn, a Nashua talk show host, have gained slightly since the September poll, which showed their margin at 47 to 34.

In the 1st District, Rep. Carol Shea-Porter leads former representative Jeb Bradley, 48 to 43 percent, a margin at the outer edge of the 6-point margin of error in the House race polls. Since last month's poll, Bradley's support has held at 43 percent, while Shea-Porter has picked up 4 points.

Democratic Gov. John Lynch, meanwhile, continues his wide lead over Republican challenger and state Sen. Joe Kenney, 60 to 34 percent, a margin identical to last month's.