New poll shows Hoffman in lead

ALBANY (AP) — A new poll shows Conservative Douglas L. Hoffman have moved ahead of Democratic nominee William L. Owens in the race for New York's 23rd Congressional District seat.

Republican Assemblywoman Dierdre K. Scozzafava dropped out of the race over the weekend and endorsed Owens after weeks of criticism that she was too liberal to run on the GOP line.

The Siena College poll released Monday had Hoffman with 41 percent of the vote, while Owens had 36 percent. The number of undecided voters is up to 18 percent. Six percent say they'll still vote for Scozzafava, whose name will remain on the ballot in Tuesday's special election.

The telephone survey of 606 likely voters was conducted Sunday. The poll has a margin of error of plus or minus 4 percentage points.