U.S. Sen. John Sununu (R-Waterville Valley) will have to improve his standing among independents if he has any chance of holding to his seat this fall, a poll released yesterday suggests.

The Granite State Poll, conducted by The University of New Hampshire Survey Center, received a lot of attention yesterday when it showed Sununu down 17 percentage points behind former Democratic Gov. Jeanne Shaheen in his re-election campaign. A closer look into the poll show the difference could be in how independent voters view him.

The poll shows Sununu with forty-three percent favorable rating among independents. Sununu's opponent, former Governor Jeanne Shaheen enjoys a fifty-seven percent favorable rating among independent voters.

Independent voters are a crucial voting block that Sununu needs to win in November.

"He is going to have to win back moderates," said non-partisan political analyst Dean Spiliotes. "To do that he's going to have to draw distinctions with the Bush administration."

Sununu has a favorable rating of sixty-four percent among self-described conservative voters. While Shaheen has an eighty-five percent favorable among liberals and forty-two percent rating from conservatives.

Spiliotes said Sununu's rating from conservatives might be due to the unpopularity of President Bush's policies among New Hampshire Republicans.

"Even in New Hampshire, the Republican policies of Bush are unpopular with New Hampshire Republicans," he said. "Those policies have tended to be viewed more favorable among Republicans in the South than with Republicans here."