12/11/19--It's a big day for polls here at The Horse Race, and we begin the discussion with one that surveyed New Hampshire voters on the Democratic primary contenders. It finds Pete Buttigieg in the lead among registered voters in the state with 18% support. Meanwhile, Joe Biden sits at a close second place with 17%. As Steve points out, it's important to note how close this race remains. The top 4 contenders rank within 6 percentage points of each other in this early primary contest. Plus, there's still much to be determined as about 1 in 5 likely voters haven't yet made up their mind.

Turning now--as we are wont to do--to transportation, Boston Globe reporter Adam Vaccaro stops by to run through the safety report on the MBTA conducted by an independent panel of experts. Here's the major takeaway: things are bad. In the agency's efforts to expedite long-term capital improvements, a focus on keeping up with daily operations is falling by the wayside. And safety, as a result, is being sacrificed.

The MassINC Polling Group Research Director Rich Parr rounds out the show with a look at a regional poll focused on the Transportation Climate Initiative (TCI). TCI is a collaborative effort between 12 states and the District of Columbia currently developing a policy to cap carbon pollution from transportation and invest in transportation improvements. The poll finds that the initiative enjoys broad support among registered voters in the seven largest states at the TCI table: Connecticut, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, and Virginia.