(Editor's note: John DiStaso now updates his political column throughout the week with news, tidbits and analysis.)

OUTRAISED, BUT STILL AHEAD. Despite being out-raised in the first quarter, Republican Sen. John Sununu still has about twice the amount of money in his campaign account as as his Democratic opponent.

Sununu’s first quarter report to the Federal Election Commission shows that he raised $1,023,360 in the quarter bringing his total for the six-year election cycle to $5.6 million. He reports $4.3 million on hand as of March 31.

Former Gov. Jeanne Shaheen, who has been running only since last September, announced last week she raised $1.2 million in the first quarter and has $2 million on hand.

Sununu during the quarter raised $682,239 from individuals and $340,521 from PACs. Shaheen has not yet released a similar breakdown.

For a detailed review of campaign finance reports and personal financial information, see the Granite Status political column tomorrow in the New Hampshire Union Leader and on UnionLeader.com.

A KEY CHANGE. UnionLeader.com today has learned of a big move in the state Democratic ranks. Pia Carusone is leaving as the state party's communications director to manage U.S. Rep. Carol Shea-Porter’s reelection campaign.

Carusone joined the party last August after serving as communications director in Maryland U.S. Rep. John Sarbanes’ congressional office. In 2006, Carusone was Sarbanes’ campaign manager.

In 2003, Carusone was a field coordinator for Howard Dean’s presidential campaign in the Laconia area.

Carusone, 27, said she is excited to take on the new post for the freshman Democrat.

“It is no secret that this will be a tough reelection for congresswoman Shea-Porter as it will be for many of the freshmen this year,” Carusone said.

She said that while the campaign ramps up. Shea-Porter “will be continuing to do her job.”

State Democratic Chairman Ray Buckley said Carusone brings Shea-Porter “Washington experience, campaign experience, and New Hampshire experience, based in part on the vital role she has played for the party through the presidential primary campaign.

“I’m really excited for her and it shows that Carol is putting together a top-notch campaign,” Buckley said.

Shea-Porter said Carusone's management experience "in New Hampshire and nationally, will be invaluable as we put together a winning re-election campaign.”

With little money and even less initial name recognition, Shea-Porter rode a dedicated and well-organized grassroots network to an upset victory over Republican incumbent Jeb Bradley in 2006.

Carusone said her goal this year will be to "professionalize (Shea-Porter's) diverse and active volunteer network" with "a professional campaign whose sharpest tool will be the power of the grassroots, which the Republicans have long ignored. We will continue the Shea-Porter tradition of positive and productive dialogue."

TEAM HUCK’S TOP PICK. Former presidential candidate Mike Huckabee unveiled his new HuckPAC web site today by asking his supporters nationwide to support his former New Hampshire campaign chairman’s bid for the 2nd District U.S. House seat.

State Sen. Bob Clegg “is the first candidate that deserves your immediate support,” Huckabee writes. “He has been a strong leader for New Hampshire, working on difficult issues facing his state including education funding and energy.”

The site provides a direct link to the donation page of Clegg’s web site.

Clegg raised $19,950 in the first quarter of the year but loaned his campaign $100,000 of his personal funds and reports having $85,000 on hand.

The Huckabee link is expected to help Clegg’s fund-raising efforts by allowing him to tap into Huckabee’s nationwide support network.

DEEP POCKETS. U.S. Rep. Paul Hodes will report a healthy campaign war chest when he files his first quarter 2008 fund-raising figures with the Federal Election Commission.

According to spokesman Mark Bergman, the 2nd District Democrat raised $257,878.63 from Jan. 1 to March 31, 2008, increasing the total raised in the current election cycle to $1.29 million. He said the campaign will report about $800,000 on hand. Hodes ended 2007 with $695,000 on hand.

The “Granite Status” and UnionLeader.com will have details on donors and expenditures for Hodes and other federal candidates when financial disclosure reports are filed.

Bergman said the Hodes report will show his campaign returned $8,675 to 11 donors as part of Hodes’ “new policy of not taking campaign contributions from companies' CEOs or lobbyists that we request or get earmarks for.”

Also, 2nd District Republican candidate Bob Clegg reports raising $19,950 during the quarter, including a $100,000 loan he made to his campaign. The “Granite Status” reported earlier this month he would make the loan. Clegg has $85,631 on hand.

Fellow 2nd District Republican candidate Jennifer Horn’s spokesman reportedly says she raised between $72,000 and $75,000 in the quarter.

HELP WANTED. John McCain’s New Hampshire campaign has issued its own “Help Wanted” ad.

In a blast email today (Friday), the campaign says:

“If you want to serve your state, help your Republican Party restore common sense to Concord, be a part of John McCain’s reform team . . . THEN RUN FOR OFFICE!

“The New Hampshire Republican Party is seeking candidates for offices up and down the ticket all around the state,” it continues. “If you are ready to step up to the plate and serve a cause greater than yourself, please consider becoming a candidate and contact NH GOP Executive Director Mike Hamilton today.”

It provides Hamilton’s email and phone number.

The ad says nothing about minimum qualifications for any particular office, including governor.

What does this say about the Republican Party in New Hampshire? Some might conclude it’s a show of concern about the strength of the ticket below McCain and Sen. John Sununu.

But state GOP Chairman Fergus Cullen called it “the first step at integrating the state Republican Party and the McCain campaign. One way McCain activists can help McCain is by running for office themselves, especially legislative seats.”

He said it's “a proactive step toward candidate recruitment, one of several we are doing.”

Cullen also said that by setting up its New England regional general election campaign office in Manchester, the McCain camp “is sending a clear signal that New Hampshire is going to play a major role in their overall strategy.”

McCain regional campaign manager Jim Barnett said, “We’re reaching out to John McCain’s tens of thousands of supporters throughout the state who have been involved but have never considered taking it to the next level and running for office.”

(Thursday's column follows.)

SOME STATE Republicans are quietly wishing Republican National Committeeman Sean Mahoney would parlay the favorable media coverage and accolades he received last week -- when the RNC's rules committee backed the New Hampshire primary -- into at least serious consideration of a run for governor.

Well, it appears they have received their wish. Mahoney is not slamming the door on the idea.

"I'm working and will continue to work on the fight to keep our presidential primary first-in-the-nation," he said. "That battle is far from over."

And, he said he is also seeking election to a full, four-year term on the RNC in an election to be held at a Republican State Committee meeting at Mount Prospect High School in Alton on May 18. Since January 2007, Mahoney has filled the unexpired term of Tom Rath, who resigned to work for Mitt Romney.

But despite running for the RNC, Mahoney declined to rule out a candidacy and spoke like someone considering a run.

He volunteered, "At the same time, there is real concern among Republicans and independents that this state budget, which increased spending by 20 percent, was irresponsible on behalf of the Democrat Legislature and was pushed through by (Gov.) John Lynch," he said.

That's as far as Mahoney would go, but watch for him to give the idea serious thought until the filing period opens in early June.

If he does run, his term on the RNC would probably be short-lived; it's unlikely he would stay on the RNC while mounting a full-time candidacy for governor.

Phyllis Woods is also seeking a full term on the RNC. She is filling the unexpired term of Nancy Merrill, who resigned last year to work on John McCain's campaign.

Undaunted

Republican Joe Kenney has been hearing and reading for two weeks about how the New Hampshire GOP needs to find a candidate to run for governor now that Manchester Mayor Frank Guinta has decided not to run.

The state senator from Wakefield has been saying that he is a candidate for governor for nearly a year now but isn't being viewed as a strong contender. But he insists he's not insulted.

"I want to play the underdog role," he said. "I've always been the grass roots candidate. I'm not afraid of any primary challenger."

He said his effort will pick up steam "once people realize that this is a movement."

Kenney was in Washington yesterday speaking to Grover Norquist's Americans for Tax Reform and meeting with the Republican Governors Association and "private fund-raisers."

Meanwhile, state board of education chairman John Lyons hasn't changed his undecided stance in the past two weeks.

State GOP Chairman Fergus Cullen says he "will continue to have conversations with a number of people who are thinking about it," and added that in doing so, he is not belittling Kenney.

"Joe Kenney himself has said he would prefer to have a primary," said Cullen.

Backing Cullen

A second GOP congressional candidate has stepped up to say that the party chairman asked him to consider running for the 2nd District House seat last summer.

Grant Bosse said Cullen "asked me if I was considering running last August."

Candidate Bob Clegg last week accused Cullen of showing favoritism because he asked Jennifer Horn to consider a candidacy while Clegg had made it clear he was seriously considering running.

Cullen denied favoring anyone, and Bosse said that while, "having the party chairman asking about it was flattering, I never thought that he was somehow dissatisfied with Bob Clegg or Jim Steiner. I didn't think he was playing favorites. Fergus was doing his job."

Bosse said he found Clegg's complaints, as reported in the New Hampshire Union Leader last Friday, "amusing."

Bosse continues to play up his pledge not to seek or support any earmark as a member of Congress and is expected today to publicly admonish Horn on the topic.

He acknowledged that he will report raising only about $10,000 in the first quarter of this year, which, he said, "is not a strong number, but I was the last one to enter the race and the others had a little bit of a head start.'

Bosse said that with veteran GOP fund-raiser Forrest McKerley now signed on as a key member of his finance committee, he is focusing on raising money in the current quarter.

Bosse also disclosed that he has landed former Manchester Mayor Emile Beaulieu as a member of his pro-life committee.

Forsythe out

As UnionLeader.com first reported yesterday, Republican Ron Paul disciple Jim Forsythe of Strafford has decided against running for the 1st District U.S. House seat.

His withdrawal leaves former Rep. Jeb Bradley and former state Commissioner of Health and Human Services John Stephen vying for the right to face Democratic incumbent Carol Shea-Porter and independent Peter Bearse in November.

Forsythe told the Status that although he raised $100,000 during the first quarter -- "not too shabby," he said -- he realized he can't compete against the two other established Republicans.

He said he wants to "stay involved, but just not as a candidate this year."

The Paul camp held a "money bomb" for Forsythe in February, with a goal of raising $400,000. That effort raised only $25,000.

On his Web site, Forsythe wrote, "Early on, based on our polling data, it appeared that there was an opportunity for victory, but that it would require a large amount of resources to get my name, background, and message out to the people of New Hampshire as quickly as possible to make up for the head start my two opponents had. However, I don't believe we have the resources in place at this time to come up to speed quickly enough."

He offered to refund donors' money.

LegiStorm

The Washington media has been reporting for several days that the Hill is in an uproar over LegiStorm, a private company that recently began posting political staffers' financial information online.

LegiStorm has long been posting salaries and privately financed travel data. We checked on our own congressional delegation's travels.

According to LegiStorm, Sen. Judd Gregg has taken only one privately financed trip since 2000. He went to Liberia and Costa Rica last year courtesy of the Aspen Institute. He approved 77 other trips by his staffers with a total value of about $130,000.

Sen. John Sununu, since taking office in 2003, has taken six privately financed trips and approved 28 others with a total value of $47,000.

In the House, Rep. Paul Hodes has approved one privately financed trip -- his own visit to Israel last August sponsored by the American Israel Education Foundation at a cost of $19,159.

Shea-Porter neither took nor approved for staff any privately financed trips, according to LegiStorm.

A Who's Who

More than 50 New Hampshire Democrats have filed to fill the nine open seats on the party's national convention delegation.

The names are not yet public, but spokesman Pia Carusone said most are well-known in the party, which, she said, could make for "excitement" and "drama" when the vote is taken on April 26.

The 14 pledged state delegates choose five pledged at-large delegates, three pledged party leader/elected official delegates and one unpledged delegate nominated by state party chair Ray Buckley.

Grading the delegation

The National Taxpayers Union has graded our congressional delegation on their 2007 votes affecting taxes, spending, the federal debt and the federal regulatory scheme.

The conservative group scored the Republicans well and the Democrats poorly.

Gregg scored 78 percent; Sununu, 71 percent, which were both "B-pluses." Hodes and Shea-Porter, with 5 percent each, received failing grades.

Honoring Rudman

Americans for Campaign Reform, John Rauh's advocacy group for public funding of federal campaigns, will honor group co-chair former Sen. Warren Rudman on May 13 at C.R. Sparks in Bedford.

The featured speakers will be former Sens. Howard Baker and Nancy Kassebaum Baker, with Gov. Walter Peterson as master of ceremonies.

Quick takes

-- Concord attorney Chuck Douglas is representing McCain's campaign in defending the federal lawsuit brought by Nashuan Fred Hollander that claims McCain is ineligible to be President because he was born in the Panama Canal Zone.

-- Heidi Mitchell is the new communications director for the AFL-CIO in New Hampshire and Maine. She ran the New Hampshire House Democratic Caucus PAC in 2006 and was deputy state director for Joe Biden's presidential campaign.

-- State Sen. Lou D'Allesandro, D-Manchester, will be in Philadelphia and Scranton this weekend volunteering for Hillary Clinton's effort in all-important Pennsylvania. He has also penned an op-ed labeling as "un-American" and "un-Democratic" Vermont Sen. Patrick Leahy's call for Clinton to drop out of the nomination race.

-- Republican District 3 Executive Council candidate Russell Prescott this week will announce the support of state Sens. Bob Letourneau and Michael Downing and 22 House members, including Reps. Lee and Matt Quandt, Ken Weyler, Jim Garrity, Jason Bedrick and Mary Griffin.

-- Republican 1st District House candidate Bradley is expected to report more than $500,000 on hand when his first-quarter fund-raising figures are filed next week.

-- Republican 2nd District House candidate Horn has picked up the endorsements of Franklin Mayor Ken Merrifield and former mayors David Palfrey and Tony Giunta. Merrifield said Horn "shares our core Republican values and will have a unique ability to attract voters across the political spectrum."

-- McCain has named his former state campaign manager, Jim Barnett, as his New England regional campaign manager for the general election. Former deputy state campaign manager Sarah Crawford has taken on a role in the national schedule and advance operation.

-- Cullen, Buckley and Secretary of State Bill Gardner will participate in an April 29 symposium on the presidential nominating process at the Harvard's Kennedy School Institute of Politics.

-- Mike Biundo says he and his Meridian Communications and NSP Graphic has been approached by several announced and prospective GOP candidates interested in his services since Guinta stepped aside. But Biundo says he is "leaning against taking any direct candidate consulting this cycle" because of business considerations and his role as chair of the anti-tax New Hampshire Advantage Coalition.

John DiStaso is senior political reporter of the New Hampshire Union Leader.