To win New Hampshire, Pete Buttigieg and Bernie Sanders need independent voters

A 7 News-Emerson College poll conducted over the weekend similarly shows Sanders and Buttigieg in the lead, with Klobuchar and Warren surprisingly ahead of Biden.This site is protected by recaptcha Privacy Policy | Terms of ServiceBoth are a drastic change from the Globe/Suffolk University poll released early last week that showed Sanders at 24 percent to Biden’s 18 percent and Buttigieg’s 11 percent, and a significant change from the last year, when polls had suggested it was a three-way race among Sanders, Biden and Warren — with Buttigieg only sparking significant voter interest since Thanksgiving.And then, in Friday night’s debate, sparks flew as the seven candidates who had qualified for the stage battled it out for votes and fired shots at Buttigieg instead of at Biden — a telling sign that the candidates think Mayor Pete is becoming the one to beat.New Hampshire is traditionally more moderate in its political views, which tends to bode well for candidates such as Buttigieg, Klobuchar and Biden, rather than candidates such as Sanders and Warren, though the state's voters do tend to favor the person who they believe has the best shot in a general election — a trend borne out by the most recent CNN poll, which shows support for Sanders rising as his perceived ability to win the general election does.