But this is an especially important bloc for Romney because registered Democrats outnumber Republicans by an over two-to-one margin.

With the 2004 presidential election still two years away, both NECN’s Vice President of News and Station Manager Charles Kravetz and Glickman said the poll numbers are probably more indicative of current support for Bush than of what will happen when voters cast their ballots.

“It’s awful early,” Glickman said. “All it generally means is that the president is still pretty popular.”

Glickman added he thought Kerry would beat Bush in Massachusetts if the election were held today.

Kravetz echoed Glickman’s assessment, calling the presidential numbers “mild indicators.”

Kravetz pointed to the looming threat of war with Iraq as a leading reason for Bush’s strong showing.

But Kravetz and Glickman diverged in opinion on Gore’s polling numbers.

“Vice President Gore didn’t test exceptionally well, which is a little surprising given that Massachusetts went for Gore [in 2000],” said Glickman, who served as agriculture secretary in the Clinton administration.

Kravetz disagreed, saying that with the “drumbeats of war” rallying support for Bush, Gore had slipped out of the limelight.

“It shows what a steep mountain Gore would have to climb,” Kravetz said.

This was the first of two polls to be conducted jointly this election season by NECN and the IOP.

—Staff writer Christopher M. Loomis can be reached at cloomis@fas.harvard.edu