Concord New Hampshire
West Congressional Church (Ward 2)
9:00 AM
It’s game time.
The polls are open and voters have started casting their ballots bright and early in New Hampshire on Tuesday.
In Concord, Abigail Lange, a homemaker and community volunteer, has lived in New Hampshire for 40 years. She voted for former North Carolina Sen. John Edwards.
“He doesn’t take money from special interest, and that’s really important to me,” Lange said. “And two, for some reason it touched me, his sincerity about making changes and bringing back the America that I remember when I was young.”
Barry Albert, another New Hampshire native, works as a middle school principle in Manchester. Hillary Clinton’s stance on education won his vote. Barack Obama was a close second.
“But I like Hillary,” Albert said. “She’s got the experience and I think she can pull us through. We have to give Obama another few years.”
On the Republican side, Steven Titus, who has lived in New Hampshire and is a disabled veteran, cast his ballot for Sen. John McCain this morning.
“I think we need to finish what we started in Iraq, and I think he’s the right person for that job,” Titus said.
The polls in New Hampshire will be open until 9:00pm as Candidates make their final push to the finish line.
***
Healthcare looms as a deciding factor at the polls in the New Hampshire primaries.
Phillip Duiment, who has lived in New Hampshire since 1975 cast his vote for Sen. Hillary Clinton this morning. Healthcare, he said, was an important deciding factor for him.
“I think she has a lot of experience not only as a Senator, but she also has experience as a first lady,” Duiment said. “I’ve followed her and I feel that she has stood for healthcare for kids.”
Sandra Burt is in what she calls, a “personal health care crisis.” In the weeks leading up to the primaries, she has attended a round table meeting with Sen. Barack Obama and talked at length with John Edwards.
Because Burt works as a volunteer for healthcare, she cannot share whom she has voted for and still continue her fight. But she has indeed cast a ballot.
“I was just trying to get the issue of healthcare out there to anyone I could get it out there to,” Burt said. “And they’ve both been very gracious to me, so it’s been a hard decision.”
***
Concord New Hampshire
Broken Ground Elementary School
12:30pm
No rest for the weary.
At Broken Ground elementary school in Concord, the spirits were as high as the sun. Temperatures reached in the 50’s, allowing groups of small children to stand outside and wave signs of support for their chosen candidates.
At promptly 12:00 p.m. Sen. Hillary Clinton’s bus rolled into the school’s drive. And even though she only stayed for 30 minutes, her supporters were jazzed.
One of the was Sana Hussein, a registered independent and regular voter. The choice between Sen. Clinton and Sen. Barack Obama was a close call, Hussein said. But in the end, Clinton won her vote.
Catherine Hardy worked in the Secretary of State’s office in the Election Division before retiring. She could not single out what drew her to Clinton, Hardy said.
“There are many reason’s why I voted for Hillary, and not just because I think we need a woman, although I do think so,” Hardy said. “But I think she’s the most qualified at this time. It’s a serious time.”
***
Rocking out the vote.
Young volunteers for the Republican candidate, Congressman Ron Paul of Texas, have been lining the streets of New Hampshire for the past week. They’ve traveled from all over the country to show their support.
Aaron Jones, one of those young travelers, has found a unique way of getting his message to the voters.
“I’m not going to study war no more, I’m not going to study Hillary’s war no more, I’m not going to study war no more,” Jones sang on a soggy street as the snow melted in Concord.
The piano, Jones said, is what he is more used to playing, but admitted to bringing the guitar along as a prop to attract voters.
Jones is a music teacher who has traveled from Bloomington Ind. His belief in Paul has brought him to New Hampshire, and on his own dime, he said. Jones also worries about having a job once he returns.
“I sacrificed a lot to be here,” Jones said. “But I know New Hampshire is one of the most important primaries, because it’s the first,” Jones said.
During the past week, Paul supporters have been moving across the state, talking to voters about Paul’s Number One principle of sticking to the U.S. Constitution.
“This constitution, this is what he believes in,” Jones tells voters. “If you believe in that, you shouldn’t have a problem with Ron Paul.”
But on the day of the elections, Jones tries to sing his message across.
“Ron Paul, Ron Paul. Have you lost your mind?” Jones sings in sarcasm. “Don’t you know it’s you job to tow the party line?”
Even though Jones was already thinking about supporting Paul, his support was sealed by meeting him in person. Backstage, at an official Ron Paul rally, the two met and discussed musicians as well as ideas for the country, Jones said.
“He just reminded me of my parents. He doesn’t have a big ego at all,” Jones said. “He really stands for a lot of things once you get to know him.”
***
Southern New Hampshire University
A packed gymnasium
8:45pm
Getting down to the wire.
The campaign parties get underway in New Hampshire, as supporters wait in large rooms, showing their support.
Over at Sen. Barack Obama’s campaign, the mood is optimistic. All eyes are glued to the incoming results from different news organizations. With a gym packed to capacity at 1,500, there is no shortage of moral support.
At Sen. Hillary Clinton’s campaign, the party is just underway. Numerous supporters file into a gym at the Southern New Hampshire University.
Pat Matthis, a resident of New Hampshire is a longtime supporter of Clinton. Nothing short of inspirational, Matthis said, is how she would describe Clinton.
“There’s a heart of gold under all that hard work,” Matthis said.
Despite the momentum Obama has gained and the criticism Clinton has received in this campaign, she is still optimistic, Matthis said.
“She’s not an entertaining person. She’s not a charismatic speaker,” Matthis said. “But that doesn’t mean she doesn’t have the right stuff to be a president.”
***
Waiting on pins and needles.
Southern New Hampshire University
10:00 p.m.
The speakers continuously blare music at Sen. Hillary Clinton’s party, as the crowd dances. Even a few staff members tap their feet and bob their heads before they catch themselves.
Each time the polls are flashed on the television screen, and the numbers for Hillary go up, a cheer rises from the waiting crowd at the Southern New Hampshire University.
It’s still a close race for Clinton and Sen. Barack Obama, but there is no shortage of patience over at the Clinton campaign party.
***
Hillary Clinton’s Victory Party
Southern New Hampshire University
10:46 p.m.
And the Crowd goes wild!
The polls have been closed. The votes have been counted. And Sen. Hillary Clinton has won the New Hampshire primaries.
The roar of the crowd is deafening, the Clinton staffers are openly dancing to “Rise up,” by Bruce Springsteen, and more than a few eyes have tears in them.
“We want change, we want change!” cheers the crowd as Sen. Barack Obama’s concession speech plays on the television in the background.
Now all that is left to do it wait for the lady of the hour, and the crowd is pumped. They are in it for the long haul tonight.
***
The Lady of the hour.
Sen. Hillary Clinton is no stranger to a tough fight, if the past week is any indication. But Tuesday night, she had come out victorious in the New Hampshire Primaries.
At 11:55 p.m., with 89 percent of precincts called, Clinton led Sen. Barack Obama of Illinois, 39 percent to 37 percent.
“Together, let’s give America the kind of comeback New Hampshire has just given me,” Hillary said. There was warmth in her tone as she continuously thanked the people of New Hampshire for bringing her back to the top.
“It’s time we had a president that stands up for all of you,” Clinton, luminous from her victory, told the crowd. “I intend to be that president.”
Clinton once again commanded the stage. She spoke about the promise of America. She spoke about restoring integrity. She spoke about restoring the credibility of America through out the world. And she recognized her fellow Democratic candidates.
“They all have put themselves on the line, day and night, on behalf of this country,” Clinton said.
As for what the future holds?
There is only perseverance for Clinton.
“Tomorrow we are going to get up, roll up our sleeves,” Clinton said. “And keep going.”
(Larissa Padden, a magazine-newspaper-online graduate student, is covering the New Hampshire primaries for the Utica Observer-Dispatch.)
-30-
