MANCHESTER, Jan 22: Senator John Kerry surged to a big lead on Thursday in the Democratic presidential nomination race in New Hampshire as US President George Bush pushed his "war on terrorism" to boost his re-election agenda.

Senator Kerry's victory in the Iowa caucuses opened up the Democratic race and has forced his six rivals for the nomination to increase their lobbying ahead of Tuesday's vote in northeastern state.

The decorated Vietnam war veteran from Massachusetts has built up a 10 percentage point lead over former frontrunner Howard Dean, according to polls in The Boston Globe and the Boston Herald.

John Kerry was backed by 31 per cent of respondents in both polls. Former general Wesley Clark and Senator John Edwards of North Carolina come in third and fourth place.

A tracking poll by Zogby International showed Senator Kerry leading by 27 per cent to 24 per cent for Mr Dean. Kerry, who had been struggling before Iowa, has expressed increasing confidence in his attacks on Bush's policies. "Within weeks after my inauguration, America will rejoin the community of Nations, and we will open a new chapter of our history," he told a meeting in the New Hampshire town of Exeter on Wednesday night.

Clark, who now appears to be Kerry's closest rival, has been highlighting his military experience as the former NATO commander who ran the Bosnia war. Dean, stung by his third place finishing in Iowa, is now seeking to radically change his image.

Dean, a physician by training, and his doctor wife were to give their first joint television interview with ABC television on Thursday. Judith Steinberg Dean has made only two appearances with her husband on the campaign trail.-AFP