New Hampshire primary results: Trump defeats Haley; Biden sweeps Democrats

Donald
Trump
gave
a
rambling,
ranting
victory
speech
after
the
New
Hampshire
primary,
attacking
Nikki
Haley
for
insisting
on
staying
in
the
Republican
nomination
contest.

“You
must
really
hate
her,”
Trump
said
to
Sen.
Tim
Scott,
referring
to
the
South
Carolina
Republican’s
endorsement
of
him
instead
of
Haley,
who
as
that
state’s
governor
appointed
Scott
to
the
Senate.

“I
just
love
you,”
Scott
told
Trump
on
the
stage
in
Nashua.

Trump
then
mocked
the
dress
Haley
wore
during
her
earlier
speech.

“Just
a
little
note
to
Nikki:
She’s
not
going
to
win,”
Trump
said.
“But
if
she
did,
she
would
be
under
investigation
by
those
people
in
15
minutes.
And
I
could
tell
you
five
reasons
why
already.
Not
big
reasons,
little
stuff
that
she
doesn’t
want
to
talk
about.”

“This
is
not
your
typical
victory
speech,”
Trump
said
of
Haley.
“But
let’s
not
have
somebody
take
a
victory
when
she
had
a
very
bad
night.
She
had
a
very
bad
night.”

He
also
falsely
claimed
that
he
won
New
Hampshire’s
general
presidential
election
in
both
2016
and
2020,
when
he
only
won
in
the
first
year.

“We
win
it
every
time,”
Trump
said
of
the
state.
“We
win
the
primary,
we
win
the
generals.
We’ve
won
it
and
it’s
a
very,
very
special
place
to
me.
It’s
very
important.”

Trump
also
repeated
false
claims
about
his
2020
national
election
loss
to
Joe
Biden.

“I
hope
the
cameras
don’t
turn
off
because
they
hate
this
but
we
got
millions
and
millions
of
more
votes
the
second
time,
right,”
Trump
said.
“But
we
had
Covid
and
they
used
Covid
to
cheat.”

—
Dan
Mangan
and
Rebecca
Picciotto

NASHUA,
N.H.
—
Sitting
in
the
heart
of
Main
Street,
Martha’s
Exchange
has
been
a
popular
stop
for
presidential
candidates
in
primaries
past.

It’s
easy
to
see
why:
The
restaurant’s
backlit
onyx
bar
and
surplus
of
dark-painted
wood
make
it
an
ideal
photo
op
for
a
politician
seeking
a
tone
of
inviting
seriousness.

Their
visits
have
also
brought
customers
to
the
area,
nearby
business
owners
told
CNBC.

But
this
year,
no
one
can
recall
any
such
stops.
And
on
Tuesday
night,
the
bar
was
nearly
empty
even
an
hour
before
polls
closed
and
news
outlets
quickly
called
the
race
for
Donald
Trump.

By
8
p.m.
ET,
the
few
lingering
at
the
bar
included
a
self-described
political
tourist
from
out
of
state,
who
soon
caught
a
cab
with
another
person
to
try
and
get
into
Trump’s
watch
party. 

The
quiet
scene
reflects
the
assessment
CNBC
heard
from Chris Galdieri,
a
political
science
professor
at
New
Hampshire’s
Saint
Anselm
College,
who
had
described
the
primary
as
alternatively
“weird”
and
“boring.”

—
Kevin
Breuninger

The
Biden
campaign
is
gearing
up
for
a
rematch
with
Donald
Trump
after
the
former
Republican
president
secured
a
first-place
win
in
New
Hampshire,
as
projected
by
NBC
News.

“Tonight’s
results
confirm
Donald
Trump
has
all
but
locked
up
the
GOP
nomination,
and
the
election
denying,
anti-freedom
MAGA
movement
has
completed
its
takeover
of
the
Republican
Party,”
Biden-Harris
2024
campaign
manager
Julie
Chavez
Rodriguez
said
in
a
statement.

Biden
swept
the
Democratic
field
in
New
Hampshire,
despite
not
having
his
name
listed
on
the
ballot
and
not
holding
campaign
events
in
the
state.

Trump’s
win
came
by
a
narrower
margin
over
GOP
challenger
Nikki
Haley,
who
poured
millions
of
dollars
into
New
Hampshire
trying
to
close
in
on
the
former
president’s
lead.
Despite
her
efforts,
Trump
still
took
the
Granite
State
and
remains
on
track
to
become
the
Republican
nominee.

As
a
result,
the
Biden
campaign
is
preparing
for
2020
déjà
vu.

“One
thing
is
increasingly
clear
today:
Donald
Trump
is
headed
straight
into
a
general
election
matchup
where
he’ll
face
the
only
person
to
have
ever
beaten
him
at
the
ballot
box:
Joe
Biden,”
Chavez
Rodriguez
said.

—
Rebecca
Picciotto

Donald
Trump,
in
an
interview
with

Fox
News,
said
Nikki
Haley
should
drop
out
of
the
race
now
“because,
otherwise,
we
have
to
keep
wasting
money
instead
of
spending
on”
President
Joe
Biden.

Trump
told
Fox
News
Digital
that
he
is
“looking
forward”
to
going
up
against
Biden.

Trump,
in
the
interview,
said
he
was
“very
honored”
by
his
victory
in
New
Hampshire,
and
that
the
Republican
Party
is
now
“very
united”
behind
him.

—
Dan
Mangan

Republican
Sens.
John
Cornyn
and
Deb
Fischer
endorsed
Former
President
Donald
Trump
on
social
media
platform
X
after
he
won
the
New
Hampshire
Republican
primary.

Cornyn,
who
has
represented
Texas
in
the
Senate
since
2002
and
is
a
key
ally
of
Senate
Minority
Leader
Mitch
McConnell,
said
he
was
supporting
Trump
just
minutes
after
all
the
polls
closed.

“I
have
seen
enough.
To
beat
Biden,
Republicans
need
to
unite
around
a
single
candidate,
and
it’s
clear
that
President
Trump
is
Republican
voters’
choice,”
Cornyn
wrote.

Fischer,
a
Nebraska
senator
since
2013,
said
she
was
endorsing
Trump
to
solve
issues
involving
inflation
and
immigration.

“It’s
time
for
Republicans
to
unite
around
President
Donald
Trump
and
make
Joe
Biden
a
one-term
President,”
Fischer
wrote.

—
Ryan
Anastasio

Former
President
Donald
Trump
won
nearly
every
traditional
Republican
voting
bloc
group
in
the
New
Hampshire
primary,
according
to
NBC
News
exit
poll
results.

74%
of
primary
voters
who
identified
as
Republicans
supported
Trump
and
88%
of
very
conservative
voters
supported
the
former
president.

Trump
also
overwhelmingly
carried
voters
without
college
degrees
and
those
with
incomes
of
less
than
$50,000,
landing
about
two-thirds
of
those
voters.

Trump
only
slightly
carried
voters
over
the
age
of
65
years
old,
getting
53%
of
those
voters.

—
Ryan
Anastasio

A
Republican
fundraiser
with
clients
who
have
have
been
helping
Nikki
Haley
says
her
loss
to
Donald
Trump
in
New
Hampshire
is
her
“Waterloo”
in
the
Republican
primary.

“I
just
had
one
donor
text
me
who
has
raised
over
$100k
for
Haley
who
just
told
me
they
are
done.
It’s
over.
I’m
sure
there
more
as
the
night
goes,”
said
the
fundraiser,
who
was
granted
anonymity
in
order
to
speak
freely
about
what
he’s
hearing
from
clients.

The
fundraiser
also
said
he
was
hearing
from
Haley
campaign
financiers
who
are
looking
for
an
exit.

Though
it’s
still
unclear
by
how
much
Haley
lost
to
Trump,
NBC
News
projected
his
victory
less
than
20
minutes
after
polls
closed.

Trump
is
also
the
favorite
to
beat
Haley
in
the
upcoming
primary
in
South
Carolina,
Haley’s
home
state.

–
Brian
Schwartz

Nikki
Haley
made
it
very
clear
that
she
did
not
intend
to
drop
out
of
the
race,
after
coming
in
second
to
Donald
Trump
in
New
Hampshire.

“What
a
great
night,”
she
proclaimed
to
a
crowd
of
cheering
voters.

Trump’s
Super
PAC
called
on
Haley
to
drop
out
of
the
race
following
Trump’s
first-place
win
in
New
Hampshire.
She
has
so
far
rebuffed
that
demand.

“This
race
is
far
from
over.
There
are
dozens
of
states
left
to
go.
And
the
next
one
is
my
sweet
state
of
South
Carolina,”
Haley
said.

The
former
U.N.
ambassador
was
banking
on
a
good
outcome
in
New
Hampshire
after
pouring
millions
of
ad
dollars
into
the
state
and
securing
key
endorsements
like
Gov.
Chris
Sununu.

“Today
we
got
close
to
half
of
the
vote.
We
still
have
a
ways
to
go
but
we
keep
moving,”
Haley
said.

Though
Haley
did
not
win
the
state,
as
her
campaign
bullishly
projected
in
months
prior,
she
did
manage
to
close
some
of
the
gap
between
her
and
Trump,
which
could
give
her
campaign
more
fumes
to
run
on
in
the
coming
weeks.

—
Rebecca
Picciotto

Jennifer
O’Malley
Dillon,
the
deputy
chief
of
staff
to
President
Joe
Biden
and
White
House
senior
advisor
Mike
Donilon
are
leaving
the
White
House
for
leadership
positions
in
Biden’s
reelection
campaign,
NBC
News
reports.

The
move
happened
more
quickly
than
anticipated
due
in
part
to
the
consolidation
of
Republican
support
around
Trump
in
his
two-person
race
between
him
and
Nikki
Haley.

“Mike
and Jen were
essential
members
of
the
senior
team
that
helped
President
Biden
and
Vice
President
Harris
earn
the
most
votes
in
American
history
in
2020,”
said
Biden
campaign
manager
Julie
Chavez
Rodriguez.
“We’re
thrilled
to
have
their
leadership
and
strategic
prowess
focused
full-time
on
sending
them
back
to
the
White
House
for
four
more
years.” 

—Chelsey
Cox

The
Super
PAC
backing
Donald
Trump
quickly
called
on
Nikki
Haley
to
“drop
out”
of
the
Republican
presidential
nomination
contest
after
she
was
projected
to
lose
the
GOP
primary
in
New
Hampshire.

“Nikki
Haley
said
she’s
running
to
stop
the
re-election
of
Harris-Biden,”
said
Taylor
Budowich,
CEO
of
Make
America
Great
Again
Inc.

“Yet,
without
a
viable
path
to
victory,
every
day
she
stays
in
this
race
is
another
day
she
delivers
to
the
Harris-Biden
campaign.
It’s
time
for
unity,
it’s
time
to
take
the
fight
to
the
Democrats,
and
for
Nikki
Haley:
it’s
time
to
drop
out,”
Budowich
said.

–

Dan
Mangan

Former
U.S.
Rep.
George
Santos
made
an
appearance
at
Trump’s
watch
party
in
New
Hampshire
as
polling
results
rolled
in.

The
former
New
York
congressman
was
seen
mingling
by
the
bar
at
the
Sheraton
Nashua
Hotel,
according
to
NBC
News’
Jake
Traylor.

Santos
announced
his

endorsement
of
Trump
last
summer,
months
before
he
was

expelled
from
the
House
in
December
for
alleged
campaign
finance
crimes.

—Chelsey
Cox

The
economy
and
immigration
are
the
most
important
issues
to
New
Hampshire
Republican
primary
voters,
according
to
the
NBC
News
exit
poll.
34%
of
voters
said
the
economy
was
most
important
compared
to
31%
for
immigration.

When
asked
about
the
state
of
their
family
finances,
about
60%
of
voters
said
they
were
holding
steady.
Just
18%
said
they
were
getting
ahead
and
20%
said
they
were
falling
behind
with
their
finances.
Both
Donald
Trump
and
Nikki
Haley
have
strongly
criticized
President
Joe
Biden
for
his
handling
of
the
economy
and
said
they
would
lower
inflation
and
taxes.

Republican
primary
voters
were
largely
split
over
whether
undocumented
immigrants
should
be
granted
legal
status
or
deported.
51%
said
they
should
be
deported
while
45%
said
they
should
be
offered
chance
at
legal
status.

Trump,
who
has
prioritized
immigration
as
one
of
his
top
issues,
has
said
that
Haley
would
be
weak
on
immigration
policy.

—
Ryan
Anastasio

Donald
Trump
is
projected
to
win
the
New
Hampshire
Republican
primary
by
NBC
News.

Nikki
Haley
has
failed
to
hit
the
ballot
targets
she
needs
to
reach
to
beat
Trump
in
the
Granite
State.

–
Dan
Mangan

Donald
Trump
is
officially
picking
up
one
of
Ron
DeSantis’
fundraisers
from
the
oil
and
gas
industry
as
the
former
president
aims
to
lock
up
the
New
Hampshire
primary.

Dan
Eberhart,
the
CEO
of
Canary,
an
oil
drilling
services
company,
told
CNBC
on
Tuesday
that
he
plans
to
head
to
Trump’s
private
club
in
Florida,
Mar-a-Lago,
on
Feb.
16
and
will
help
raise
campaign
cash
against
President
Joe
Biden
throughout
the
rest
of
the
election
season.
Trump
is
hosting
a
fundraising
event
that
night
at
his
private
club
in
Florida.

Eberhart
backed
DeSantis
over
Trump
throughout
the
first
year
of
the
primary
season.
He
donated
around
$10,000
to
DeSantis’
campaign
for
president
last
year,
according
to
data
from
OpenSecrets.
DeSantis
dropped
out
of
the
race
after
coming
in
second
against
Trump
in
the
Iowa
caucuses.

He
was
also
one
of
DeSantis’
outspoken
donors
while
the
Florida
governor
was
still
in
the
race.

“The
national
polls
don’t
matter
at
this
point,”
Eberhart
told

ABC
News
in
2023.
“DeSantis
is
the
only
candidate
who
can
beat
Trump.
No
one
else
is
close
in
the
polling.”
Eberhart
now
plans
to
also
be
a
supportive
surrogate
for
Trump,
he
told
CNBC.

Eberhart
was
a
donor
to
Trump’s
campaign
when
he
ran
for
reelection
as
president
in
2020.

–
Brian
Schwartz

Incumbent

President
Joe
Biden
has
won
the
New
Hampshire
Democratic
primary
via
write-in
ballots,
NBC
News
projects.

Biden
beat
long-shot
challengers
like
House
Rep.

Dean
Phillips
and
author

Marianne
Williamson,
despite
not
having
his
name
on
the
ballot
and
not
holding
campaign
events
in
the
Granite
State.

—
Rebecca
Picciotto

Nikki
Haley
in
early
voting
results
from
several
New
Hampshire
cities
is
hitting
targets
she
needs
to
reach
to
run
a
“very
close
race
statewide”
with
the
favorite,
Donald
Trump,
according
to
MSNBC’s
election
results
guru
Steve
Kornacki.

In
the
city
of
Concord,
Haley
was
beating
Trump
with
60%
of
the
vote
currently
reported,
or
3
percentage
points
more
than
her
target,
Kornacki
noted.

In
Keene,
Haley
was
winning
with
54%
of
the
votes
reported
so
far,
which
is
exactly
her
target.

And
in
Dover,
Haley
was
besting
Trump
with
53%
of
the
votes
reported,
one
percentage
point
less
than
her
target.

But
Haley
was
18
percentage
points
lower
than
her
target
in
Laconia,
where
she
was
trailing
Trump
with
just
34%
of
the
votes
reported.

–
Dan
Mangan

The
New
Hampshire
Republican
primary
is
too
early
to
call,
but
initial
returns
show
Donald
Trump
is
leading
Nikki
Haley,
NBC
News
reported.

MSNBC’s
election
project
expert
Steve
Kornacki
tweeted,
“With
10%
in,
we
have
Haley
exceeding
her
benchmark
in
areas
with
higher
concentrations
of
college+
by
~3
points,
but
falling
short
of
it
by
~9
points
in
areas
with
lower
college
attainment
rates.”

–
Dan
Mangan

Voters
in
the
New
Hampshire
Republican
primary
are
split
on
whether
President
Joe
Biden
legitimately
won
the
2020
election,
according
to
the
NBC
News
exit
poll.

49%
of
voters
said
that
Biden
legitimately
won
the
election.
The
same
share
also
said
that
Biden
did
not
win
fairly.

The
numbers
are
in
stark
contrast
to
Iowa,
where
about
two-thirds
of
voters
said
that
Biden
did
not
win
legitimately.

Nikki
Haley
has
criticized
Donald
Trump
for
his
lies
about
the
2020
election
and
has
said
that
Jan.
6
was
a
“terrible
day.”

“Biden
won
that
election.
And
the
idea
that
[Trump’s]
gone
and
carried
this
out
forever,
to
the
point
that
he’s
going
to
continue
to
say
these
things
to
scare
the
American
people,
are
wrong,”
Haley
said
in
a
debate
on
Jan.
10.

—
Ryan
Anastasio

All
eyes
have
been
on
New
Hampshire
today,
except
for
those
of
incumbent

President
Joe
Biden,
who
held
a
campaign
event
with
Vice
President
Kamala
Harris
nearly
500
miles
away
in
Virginia
to
attack
former
president

Donald
Trump’s
anti-abortion
agenda.

“The
reason
women
are
being
forced
to
travel
across
state
lines
for
health
care
is
Donald
Trump.
The
reason
their
family
members
are
getting
threatened
with
prosecution
is
because
of
Donald
Trump.
And
the
reason
their
fundamental
rights
have
been
stripped
away
is
Donald
Trump,”
Biden
said.

The
Virginia
rally
took
place
as
New
Hampshire
voters
headed
to
primary
polls,
where
Biden
was
not
on
the
ballot
and
not
campaigning.

This
week
would
have
marked
the
51st
anniversary
of
Roe
v.
Wade
if
it
had
not
been
overturned
by
the
conservative-majority
Supreme
Court
in
June
2022,
a
reversal
that
has
proven
unpopular
with
voters.

As
Biden
lags
on
issues
like
immigration
and
the
economy,
his
reelection
campaign
has
turned
its
attention
to
reproductive
health
care
and
abortion
rights,
aligning
the
incumbent
president
with
the
sentiment
of
many
Americans.

The
full
cast
of
the
Biden-Harris
2024
campaign
turned
out
for
this
Virginia
event,
including
first
lady
Dr.
Jill
Biden
and
second
gentleman
Douglas
Emhoff.

Throughout
the
rally,
calls
were
heard
of
“four
more
years,”
while
protesters
attacked
his
support
for
Israel
in
the
ongoing
war
in
Gaza
and
called
for
a
cease-fire.

—
Rebecca
Picciotto

Former
United
Nations
Ambassador
Nikki
Haley
said
she
will
not
exit
the
presidential
race
if
she
loses
Tuesday’s
New
Hampshire
primary.

“At
the
end
of
the
day,
it’s
about
the
energy,
it’s
about
the
momentum,
and
it’s
about
if
it
looks
like
we
are
putting
up
a
good
challenge
to
Donald
Trump,”
Haley
told
Fox
News
in
an
interview
Tuesday
morning.

Haley
Campaign
Manager
Betsy
Ankney
outlined
a
path
for
the
campaign
through
Super
Tuesday
on
March
5,
when
voters
will
head
to
the
polls
in
more
than
a
dozen
states.

“Until
then,
everyone
should
take
a
deep
breath.
The
campaign
has
not
even
begun
in
any
of
these
states
yet.
No
ads
have
been
aired
and
candidates
aren’t
hustling
on
the
ground,”
Ankney
wrote
in
a
Tuesday
memo.

New
Hampshire
Republican
Party
Chairman
Chris
Ager
said
the
Haley
campaign
will
need
to
reassess
their
path
forward
if
Trump
wins
by
double-digits
in
the
state.

“I
can
envision
a
double-digit
Trump
win
ends
the
primary.
And
if
Nikki
Haley
wins,
then
you
know,
buckle
up,
it’s
going
to
be
a
good
one,”
Ager
told
NBC
News
on
Monday.

New
Hampshire
Democratic
primary
voters
will
see
the
names
of
21

Democratic
candidates
on
their
ballots.

While

Biden
is
projected
to
win
the
majority
of
Democratic
votes,
despite
the
Democratic
National
Committee’s
decision
to
keep
his
name
off
the
ballot
over
a
dispute
with
New
Hampshire
party
officials,
Rep.
Dean
Phillips,
D-Minn.,
and
Marianne
Williamson
are
both
still
hoping
to
stay
in
the
race.
In
December,
Phillips’
support
was

at
around
10%
and
Williamson’s
was
7%.

Phillips,
who
has
been
a
longshot
challenging
the
incumbent
president
since

last
October,
is
a
former
businessman
elected
to
public
office
in
2018.
He
co-founded
Minnesota
coffee
shop
chain
Penny’s
Coffee
after
serving
as
executive
chairman
of
Talenti
Gelato,
and
as
president
of
his
family’s
distillery
and
liquor
brand
from
the
early
’90s
until
2012.

Phillips
announced
in
November
that
he
would
not
seek
reelection
to
the
House
in
2024.

Williamson
is
a
lecturer
and
author
of
over
a
dozen
books,
and
she
ran
as
an
Independent
in
2014
to
represent
California
in
the
House.
She
also
ran
for
president
in
2020
as
a
Democrat,
but
dropped
out
early
in
the
contest.

—Chelsey
Cox

Just
under
half
of
New
Hampshire
Republican
primary
voters
today
identified
as
independents,
according
to
early
results
from
the
NBC
News
exit
poll.
45%
of
voters
so
far
said
they
were
independents
while
47%
identified
as
Republicans.

The
share
of
Republican
primary
voters
who
identify
as
independent
is
higher
today
than
it
was
in
2016,
the
last
time
there
was
a
competitive
Republican
primary.
That
year,
42%
of
voters
in
the
GOP
contest
said
they
were
independents.

Eight
percent
of
voters
today
in
the
Republican
primary
said
they
were
Democrats,
which
is
more
than
double
the
3%
share
in
2016.

Registered
Democrats
are
prohibited
from
voting
in
the
state’s
Republican
primary,
so
the
self-identified
Democrats
are
likely
undeclared,
that
is,
not
registered
with
either
party.

Around
40%
of
the
New
Hampshire
electorate
is
undeclared,
and
polls
suggest
these
voters
are
more
likely
to
tilt
towards
former
South
Carolina
Gov.
Nikki
Haley
than
registered
Republicans,
who
tend
to
tilt
towards
former
President
Donald
Trump.

Experts
said
higher
turnout
among
undeclared
voters
could
benefit
Haley,
who
polls
suggest
voters
see
as
more
moderate
than
Trump.

—
Ryan
Anastasio

NASHUA,
N.H.
—
The
effort
to
deliver
Joe
Biden
a
victory
in
the
state’s
Democratic
primary
is
well
underway,
even
though
the
president
isn’t
on
the
ballot.

“There’s
a
lot
on
the
line,”
said
Sonia
Prince,
an
activist
and
volunteer
for
the
Democratic
incumbent’s
write-in
campaign.

A
win
for
Biden
will
“show
the
country
that
we
still
support
him,
and
we
support
democracy
and
we
support
women’s
rights,”
Prince
said
outside
a
polling
location
at
Amherst
Street
Elementary
School.

Prince,
carrying
a
placard
urging
passing
voters
to
“ask
me
about
writing
in
Joe
Biden,”
stood
a
few
feet
from
a
handful
of
pro-Trump
demonstrators.

Breaking
with
decades
of
tradition,
the
Democratic
National
Committee
this
year
is
recognizing
South
Carolina
as
the
nation’s
first
primary
election.
The
change,
which
drew
the
ire
of
some
New
Hampshire
officials,
followed
Biden’s
recommendation.

The
Granite
State
is
holding
a
Democratic
primary
election
anyway,
featuring
21
candidates
other
than
Biden.

“I
totally
agree
with”
the
change,
Prince
said,
because
New
Hampshire
is
“not
really
the
best
snapshot
of
America.”
She
noted
that
South
Carolina
is
more
racially
diverse
than
the
Granite
State,
which
is

overwhelmingly
white.

Prince
said
she
was
motivated
by
her
support
for
Biden,
not
merely
her
opposition
to
Donald
Trump.
But
she
still
expressed
concern
about
the
Republican
former
president
getting
into
office
again.

“We’re
going
to
be
feeling
the
pain
of
Donald
Trump
for
years
to
come,”
she
said.
“I
mean,
I
don’t
want
this
for
me
or
my
kids.”

—

Kevin
Breuninger

New
Hampshire
Secretary
of
State
David
Scanlan
said
that
he
and
other
top
elections
officials
in
other
states
will
“have
to
find
ways
to
combat”
the
use
of
technology
to
create
realistic-sounding
—
but
fake
—

robocalls
like
the
one
made
to
Granite
State
residents
in
the
days
before
the
primary.

In
that
call,
an
artificially
generated
voice
of
President

Joe
Biden
urged
people
not
to
vote
in
the
primary,
saying
it
would
not
make
a
difference.

“That
call
is
very
concerning
because
it
is
a
form
of
voter
suppression
and
it
is
illegal,”
Scanlan
said
in
an
interview
with
MSNBC.

The
fake
Biden
call,
which
is
being
investigated
by
the
New
Hampshire
attorney
general’s
office,
told
people,
“It’s
important
that
you
save
your
vote
for
the
November
election.”

“Voting
this
Tuesday
only
enables
the
Republicans
in
their
quest
to
elect
Donald
Trump
again,”
the
call
says.
Your
vote
makes
a
difference
in
November,
not
this
Tuesday.”

These
kinds
of
phony
calls
have
worried
“secretaries
of
state
around
the
country,”
said
Scanlan.

–
Dan
Mangan

The
official
answer
to
that
question
is,
New
Hampshire
will
not
impact
the
Democratic
nomination
at
all.

And
President
Joe
Biden’s
name
will
not
appear
printed
on
the

New
Hampshire
primary
ballot.

Under
Biden’s
advisement,
the
Democratic
National
Committee
selected
South
Carolina
to
be
2024’s
first
official
Democratic
primary,
breaking
a
century-long
tradition
of
New
Hampshire
going
first.

Some
context
for
that
decision:
In
2020,
Biden
secured
just
8%
of
the
vote
in
the

Granite
State,
a
major
disappointment.
But
he
won

South
Carolina
with
48%
of
the
vote.

Furious
at
the
new
timeline,
New
Hampshire
went
against
the
DNC’s
guidance
and
scheduled
its
primary
to
happen
first
anyway,
saying
state
law
required
it.

As
a
result,
Biden’s
name
is
not
on
today’s
Democratic
primary
ballot.

Though
New
Hampshire
has
10
delegates
who
will
attend
the
Democratic
National
Convention,
none
of
them
will
be
pledged
to
a
candidate
tonight,
because
this
is
not
a
sanctioned
primary.
In
other
words,
tonight’s
primary
bears
no
official
weight
on
the
Democratic
nomination.

—
Rebecca
Picciotto

On
the
record,
President
Joe
Biden
is
not
actively
competing
in
today’s
New
Hampshire
primary:
His
name
is
not
listed
on
ballots
and
he
has
held
no
official
campaign
events.

But
unofficially,
Biden
supporters
are
still going
for
the
win.
Though
the
president
has
not
campaigned
in
the
Granite
State
himself,
some
surrogates
have
organized write-in
events,
teaching
and
encouraging
New
Hampshire
Democrats
to
write
“Joe
Biden”
on
their
ballots.

Write-in
campaigns
are
hard
to
pull
off,
and
there
is
no
real
benchmark
on
which
to
measure
Biden’s
performance.

Plus,
as
a
non-DNC-sanctioned
primary,
New
Hampshire
will
not
award
any
delegates
tonight.
So
determining
a
capital-V
Victory
for
Biden
may
just
be
a
matter
of
spin.

Some
say
the
president
needs
at
least
50%
of
the
vote
to
create
a
narrative
of
momentum
going
into
the
official
primaries.
Roughly
88,000
Democrats
are
expected
to
turn
out
to
vote.
Biden
is
up
against
House
Rep.
Dean
Phillips,
D-Minn.,
and
author
Marianne
Williamson,
both
polling
significantly
behind
him,
though
their
names
are
on
the
New
Hampshire
ballot.

—
Rebecca
Picciotto

As
of
midday,
voting
in
the
primary
was
proceeding
without
major
issues,
New
Hampshire
Secretary
of
State
David
Scanlan
said
in
an
interview
with
MSNBC.

“Everything
is
running
very
smoothly,”
Scanlan
said.

Any
problems
that
have
occurred
at
polling
places
have
been
addressed
quickly,
he
said.

Scanlan
said
it
was
too
early
to
know
if
turnout
would
exceed
his
prediction,
of
about
320,000
Republican
primary
voters,
and
80,000
Democratic
ballots.

“We
will
have
the
results
of
both
the
Republican
primary
and
the
Democratic
primary
before
the
night
is
over,”
he
added.

–
Dan
Mangan

Donald
Trump
campaigned
in
New
Hampshire
on
the
promise
to
cut
corporate
taxes
for
a
second
time,
if
he
were
elected
president.

In
a
little-noticed

clip
from
a
recent
Fox
News
interview
that
took
place
in
New
Hampshire,
the
former
president
was
asked
whether,
if
he
were
president,
he
would
“do
larger
tax
cuts?
Corporate
tax
cuts?”

“I
was
planning
on
it.
Had
the
result
been
different.
The
result
was
just
fine,
by
the
way,”
Trump
said,
in
what
appeared
to
be
an
unusual
commentary
on
the
outcome
of
the
2020
presidential
election,
which
Trump
falsely
claims
was
stolen.

In
2017,
Trump
signed
a
landmark
tax
cuts
bill
that
brought
the
corporate
tax
rate
to
21%,
down
from
35%.

–
Brian
Schwartz

NASHUA,
N.H.
—
Even
in
one
of
the
nation’s
northernmost
states,
the
southern
border
is
top
of
mind
for
supporters
of
Donald
Trump.

“I
think
we’re
done
for
good,”
if
President
Joe
Biden
is
reelected,
because
of
“everybody
coming
over
the
border,”
said
Ruth
Bealand,
83.
“He
took
our
borders
down,
and
we’re
not
safe
anymore,”
she
said
of
Biden,
a
Democrat.

“The
border’s
number
one,”
said
David,
79,
who
asked
that
his
last
name
not
be
used.
His
wife
Julia,
72,
agreed.

Trump
is
“going
to
put
all
those
immigrants
back
where
they
belong,”
said
Julia,
before
quickly
clarifying,
“We
all
come
from
immigrants.
But
our
immigrants,
our
family,
did
it
the
right
way.”

—

Kevin
Breuninger

New
Hampshire
primary
voters
are

mostly
white
and
have
a
higher
income
than
the
national
average,
according
to
federal
demographic
data.

The
state’s
estimated
population
in
July
2023
was
slightly

over
1.4
million,
of
which
92.6%
are
white,
according
to
the
U.S.
Census
Bureau.

Median
annual
household
income
was
$90,845
from
2018
to
2022
—

over
$16,000
more
than
the
national
median
income
per
household
in
2022.

The
unemployment
rate
in
the
Granite
State

is
also
lower
than
the
national
average:

In
October,
it
was
2.1%,
1.5
percentage
points
below
the
national
unemployment
rate
that
month
of
3.6%.

Yet
it
remains
to
be
seen
how
New
Hampshire’s
particular
demographic
and
economic
makeup
affect
the
choices
its
voters
make
at
the
polls.

Nationwide
surveys
consistently
show
that
the
overall
strength
of
the
U.S.
economy
in
recent
years
has
not
translated
into
higher
rates
of
voter
approval
of
President
Joe
Biden’s
handling
of
the
economy.

State-by-state
inflation
rates
are
difficult
to
calculate,
but
polls
clearly
point
to
a
link
between
post-pandemic
jumps
in
consumer
prices
and
voter
frustration
with
Biden.

—
Chelsey
Cox

The
Virginia
home
of
a
top
U.S.
cybersecurity
official
whose
work
includes
securing
the
nation’s
elections
was
swatted
in
late
December,
authorities
said.

Arlington
Police
said
a
911
call
on
Dec.
30
falsely
reported
a
shooting
at
the
residence
of
Jen
Easterly,
director
of
the
Department
of
Homeland
Security’s
Cybersecurity
and
Infrastructure
Security
Agency,
or
CISA.

The
incident
is
the
latest
in
a
string
of
reported
swatting
calls
targeting
public
figures
who
have
been
criticized
by
former
President
Donald
Trump.
Special
counsel
Jack
Smith,
who
is
prosecuting
Trump
in
two
federal
cases,
was
swatted
on
Christmas
Day.
Two
judges
presiding
over
cases
involving
the
former
president
have
also
been
targeted.

“These
incidents
pose
a
serious
risk
to
the
individuals,
their
families,
and
in
the
case
of
swatting,
to
the
law
enforcement
officers
responding
to
the
situation,”
Easterly
said
in
a
statement.

“While
my
own
experience
was
certainly
harrowing,
it
was
unfortunately
not
unique.
In
particular,
several
of
our
nation’s
election
officials
have
also
been
targeted
with
this
type
of
harassment
and
other
threats
of
violence,”
Easterly
said.

“The
men
and
women
of
both
parties
who
run
our
elections
work
tirelessly
to
ensure
their
security
and
integrity.
We
at
CISA,
along
with
our
partners,
will
continue
to
support
these
election
heroes
as
they
work
every
day
to
safeguard
our
most
sacred
democratic
process.”

—
Dan
Mangan

Write-in
voting
is
the
only
way
New
Hampshire
Democrats
can
cast
a
ballot
for
incumbent
President
Joe
Biden,
if
they
so
choose.

To
do
so,
voters
must
fill
in
the
“Write-In”
bubble,
located
on
the
last
line
of

the
ballot.
In
the
corresponding
line
to
the
left,
they
must
write
the
name
of
their
preferred
candidate.

The
write-in
votes
will
be
hand-counted
by
poll
workers
who
will
determine
a
ballot’s
vote
based
on
“intent,”
Secretary
of
State
David
Scanlan
told
NBC.
Write-in
ballots
will
count
if
a
poll
worker
can
reasonably
figure
out
what
the
voter
intended.

“If
it’s
a
phonetic
spelling,
then
it
will
likely
be
counted.
If
it
is
simply
a
first
name,
Joe,
and
there
may
be
other
Joes
on
the
ballot,
then
that’s
a
different
situation,”
Scanlan
said.

The
final
tally
should
become
available
around
11
p.m.
ET.

Besides
Biden,
a
progressive
network
online
is
encouraging
voters
to
write

“cease-fire”
on
their
ballots,
to
protest
U.S.
support
of
Israel
in
its
ongoing
war
with
Hamas
in
Gaza.

—
Rebecca
Picciotto

NASHUA,
N.H.
—
The
primary
drives
a
lot
of
spending
in
the
Granite
State
—
but
the
election
economy
isn’t
limited
to
TV
ad
sales
and
hotel
rooms.

At
Ledge
Street
Elementary
School,
one
of
this
city’s
nine
polling
locations,
a
parent-teacher
organization
is
capitalizing
on
the
steady
flow
of
foot
traffic
with
a
bake
sale.

Residents
heading
inside
to
vote
will
pass
by
a
trio
of
fold-out
tables
piled
high
with
cookies,
cupcakes,
dipped
pretzels
and
an
array
of
other
homemade
and
home-wrapped
goods
from
about
20
parents.

It’s
prime
real
estate,
but
there’s
no
price-gouging
here:
Most
of
the
goods
sell
for
50
cents,
though
larger
items,
like
the
postcard-sized
“I
Voted”
cookies,
fetch
$1.

The
PTO’s
last
bake
sale,
at
a
state-level
election
in
November,
netted
around
$300,
said
Amy
Shuler,
a
fifth-grade
teacher
and
the
group’s
treasurer.
Some
of
that
total
came
from
donations,
she
noted.

This
time
around
has
already
been
much
busier,
she
said.

The
money
helps
fund
field
days,
assemblies,
playground
equipment
and
sometimes
even
classroom
supplies.

There’s
“a
lot
of
generosity
toward
the
PTO,”
said
Shuler.

—

Kevin
Breuninger

Four
of
New
Hampshire’s
10
counties
could
be
key
bellwethers
to
watch
tonight
to
gauge
all-important
voter
turnout,
according
to
the

University
of
Virginia
Center
for
Politics.

Hillsborough,
Rockingham,
Stafford
and
Merrimack
counties
together
comprise
75%
of
the
primary
electorate.

Since
1952,
seven
towns
in
New
Hampshire
have
consistently

gone
to
the
eventual
winner
of
the
state’s
Republican
primary.
Four
of
them
are
located
in
three
of
those
counties,
NBC
News
reported.

Trump
won
the
city
of
Rochester
in
Stafford
County
by
20
points
in
2016,
close
to
his
23-point
margin
of
victory
in
New
Hampshire
that
year,
according
to
NBC.

Hillsborough
County
made
up
nearly
30%
of
the
primary
vote
in
2016,
while
1
out
of
4
votes
came
from
Rockingham
County.
Merrimack
County,
located
west
of
Stafford,
was
home
to
12%
of
Republican
primary
voters
in
2016.

—
Chelsey
Cox

The
New
Hampshire
Republican
primary
campaign
will
have
cost
over
$70
million
in
advertisements,
according
to
data
from

AdImpact.

The
massive
amount
of
ad
money
was
split
between
the
campaigns
and
supportive
political
action
committees
of
Donald
Trump,
Nikki
Haley
and
Ron
DeSantis.
The
ads
aired
on
television,
radio
and
digital
platforms.

Haley
will
wrap
up
the
New
Hampshire
primary
riding
on
a
wave
of
$30
million
in
ad
support,
which
includes
over
$18
million
from
a
pro-Haley
super
PAC,
SFA
Fund
Inc.

Trump
and
his
supportive
super
PAC
have
invested
more
than
$15
million
in
ads
in
New
Hampshire.

—
Brian
Schwartz