Sanders pulls away from Buttigieg in New Hampshire poll

Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) has gained some breathing room in the New Hampshire Democratic presidential primary just after former South Bend, Ind., Mayor Pete Buttigieg pulled into a near-tie with the Vermont senator last week, according to a WBZ–Boston Globe–Suffolk University tracking poll released Monday.

The poll shows Sanders with an 8-point lead in the Granite State, receiving the backing of 27 percent of respondents. Buttigieg was second in the poll with 19 percent of the vote and Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) surged to third place with 14 percent.

Former Vice President Joe Biden and Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) gained 11.8 percent and 11.6 percent of the vote, respectively, to fall within the margin of error for third.

Buttigieg’s performance in the Iowa caucuses may have led to a bump last week that has faded following Friday’s Democratic debate, David Paleologos, director of the Suffolk University Political Research Center, told CBS Boston.

“This is the first time all of the survey is post-debate,” Paleologos said. “Whether Klobuchar’s spike is temporary remains to be seen. Sanders’s improvement comes in two areas: the West/North region — the four counties that know him best — and people torn between him and Warren. If Klobuchar were to finish third or fourth, she’s going to knock someone into that fifth spot, a real dire place to be for Biden or Warren.”

Sanders has led the field in most polls ahead of the first-in-the-nation primary Tuesday, while most polling also has Buttigieg solidifying his position in second place after being awarded the most delegates in the Iowa caucuses.

The tracking poll surveyed a two-day rolling sample of 500 New Hampshire likely Democratic primary voters and has a margin of error of plus or minus 4.4 percentage points.