MANCHESTER – A new poll shows Democratic challenger Jeanne Shaheen with a substantial lead over Republican incumbent John E. Sununu early in their campaign for the U.S. Senate.

The same poll shows that if an election for governor were held today, Democratic incumbent John Lynch would easily defeat potential GOP challenger Frank Guinta, the Manchester mayor.

In the Senate race, the American Research Group of Manchester polled 541 registered voters and found 47 percent favoring Shaheen, a former governor, and 33 percent favoring Sununu, with 20 percent undecided. The margin of error was 4.2 percent.

An ARG poll in December had found Sununu leading Shaheen, 52 to 41 percent, although other polls have consistently shown Shaheen leading Sununu.

ARG also polled 541 registered votes about the potential Lynch-Guinta gubernatorial match-up and found 62 percent favoring Lynch, 20 percent favoring Guinta with 18 percent undecided. The margin of error for this race was also 4.2 percent.

Guinta is not an announced candidate but has established a political committee to explore a run and raise money.

The poll also found 55 percent of voters approving of the way Lynch is handling his job as governor, with 21 percent disapproving and 21 percent undecided.

A full story will appear in the New Hampshire Union Leader and on UnionLeader.com tomorrow.