Gambling Scandal May Cost Mass Congressman: Tisei Now Leading in Polls

BOSTON (Associated Press) — A new poll gives Republican challenger Richard Tisei (TIH'-say) a slight lead over seven-term incumbent Democrat John Tierney in the state's 6th Congressional District, but the survey also finds nearly one-third of likely voters undecided.

The poll of 371 likely voters in the district, conducted Sept. 21-Sept. 27, gave Tisei, a former state senator, 37 percent to Tierney's 31 percent. Thirty percent said they were undecided.

The poll by the University of New Hampshire Survey Center had a margin of error of 5.1 percent.

Republicans view the 6th District as the party's best hope of picking up a House seat in Massachusetts.

Tierney's wife, Patrice, was convicted last year of filing false tax returns for one of her two brothers accused of running an illegal offshore gambling ring. Tierney himself has not been accused of wrongdoing.