New Hampshire Secretary of State: Tradition matters in having primary first
CONCORD, N.H. - New Hampshire Secretary of State Bill Scanlan defended the state's decision to defy the Democratic National Committee (DNC) and hold the primary on Jan. 23, arguing that the "first in the nation" tradition is important.
The move ends a months long debate with the president and the Democratic Party. The DNC argue that New Hampshire isn't diverse enough and doesn't reflect voters nationally. They attempted to elevate South Carolina to the top of the primary calendar instead. President Biden is now the first sitting president to not appear on the New Hampshire primary ballot.
"I think the precedent that President Biden has potentially set is no Democrat will ever dare try to skip New Hampshire again," said Gov. Chris Sununu. "I think it's going to really hurt President Biden, it's going to hurt his chances and hurts the Democrat Party as a whole."
While New Hampshire has been "first in the nation" for more than 100 years, some voters agree with the Democrats' attempt to move it to another state.
"The early primary should be from something where you have a lot of diversity and it reflects the structure of this country," said voter Dave Elderkin.
Other voters agree with Scanlan, saying the New Hampshire primary is what makes the battleground state special.
"Everybody is interested in it," said voter Patsy Elderkin. "Everybody pays attention. It's more personal, I think, here. So people really try to see the candidates. They like to vet them really well."
"In today's society, it seems like we're quick to eliminate tradition and ignore them but I'd like to think 100 years from now, the people of this country will really be glad we kept this one."