More Granite Staters support expanded gambling than oppose it, but opponents are more intense than supporters, according to a survey conducted by Andy Smith of the University of New Hampshire Survey Center.

That could be a good sign for opponents.

"In any public policy debate, it's intensity that's more important," Smith said. "The general supporters are not the people who get out to be angry when something happens or doesn't happen, and who are likely to punish elected officials."

Smith polled 502 New Hampshire adults as part of the Granite State Poll in the first week of October and presented the findings at a state Gaming Study Commission meeting yesterday.

According to the survey, 49 percent of respondents support expanded gambling and 36 percent oppose it. But of opponents, 70 percent "strongly" oppose expanded gambling, while 51 percent of supporters "strongly" favor it.

Several factors were considered to determine what characterizes a supporter or an opponent. One factor that could be important in the future is age. Seventy-three percent of 18- to 34-year-olds supported it, while 47 percent of those 65 and older opposed it.

"What it says to me is down the road, you're likely to see the general public become more supportive of expanded gambling because older people who oppose it are dying," Smith said.

Unsurprisingly, those who already gambled were most heavily in favor of expanding gambling. Political affiliation made no difference, Smith said. Geographically, 55 percent of people in western New Hampshire opposed expanded gambling while 63 percent of people in central New Hampshire supported it.

Asked about the benefits of expanded gambling, 45 percent of respondents said there were revenue and tax benefits, while 16 percent cited jobs and economic growth. Twenty-three percent said there were no benefits at all.

Asked about the problems of expanded gambling, 28 percent said there were crime-related problems, while 33 percent cited money-related issues, such as addiction and bankruptcy. Fourteen percent said there were no problems.

The survey also found that gambling is already prevalent in New Hampshire. Over a three-month period, 41 percent of respondents had bought a ticket for a New Hampshire lottery drawing, and 31 percent bought a lottery scratch ticket. (Many people bought both types of lottery tickets, so were counted in both figures.) Ten percent had left New Hampshire to gamble at a casino or another place with slot machines.