Wherever he went, his field staff had recruited a crowd: Close to 300 attended an "Ask Mitt Anything" forum in Exeter last Sunday, another 250 or so gathered Wednesday in a sweltering middle school auditorium in Bedford.

Some were sold on the spot. Diane Morgera, a Republican and an accountant from Stratham, found much to like in Romney's large, close family - his wife, son, daughter-in-law, and grandson attended the Exeter forum - and she felt he had a clear grasp of the country's economic challenges.

"I think he should be president," she declared as she left the Exeter Town Hall. "I'm very impressed with his grasp of issues at a high level, and he has wonderful organizational and administrative skills."

But for most voters interviewed along the trail last week, it was not so simple. While many said they liked what they saw, they were not ready to make up their minds.

"I was really impressed with him; he seemed very relaxed, very confident, and very knowledgeable," said Francene Donahue, an undeclared voter in her late 60s who attended the Bedford forum. But she added that she had also liked Giuliani and that she had not yet settled on a candidate, saying, "I think it's early."

Sergio Gonzalez, 41, an undeclared voter from Somersworth, said Romney "says all the right words."

"But I'm really concerned about some of the changes in his positions in Massachusetts," Gonzalez added. "He seemed to be prochoice. Now he seems to be adamantly prolife, and his explanation of the change seems to be artificial."

Early opinion polls are notoriously poor predictors of primary victors. In July 2000, George W. Bush was well ahead of McCain, who later won the primary by 19 points; Howard Dean towered over his rivals in the summer 2004. And in New Hampshire, Romney has had the luxury of being the only candidate on television for months.

Giuliani began running three radio ads in the state last week and began a two-day swing in New Hampshire Monday. His campaign says that it plans to add more New Hampshire staff soon and that the candidate will be spending more time in the state, whose moderate Republican electorate may be well-suited for the former New York mayor.

While McCain's campaign has suffered serious setbacks, he has a strong team of New Hampshire activists helping him and a reservoir of good will among many Granite Staters from the 2000 campaign. At a forum in Manchester last week, the relatively small crowd seemed to genuinely connect with the senator.

"Governor Romney spent a lot of money in the three early primary states; he's basically executing the McCain strategy for 2000," said Steve Duprey, a former state party chairman who is now McCain's state cochairman. "Now you'll see McCain execute that strategy, as well."