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Hillary wins in New Hampshire
09/01/2008 07:09 - (SA)
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| Democratic presidential hopeful Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton celebrates at her primary election night victory rally in Manchester, New Hampshire. (Elise Amendola, AP) |
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Manchester, New Hampshire - Hillary Rodham Clinton on Tuesday claimed a victory in New Hampshire's primary, turning around a campaign that appeared to be stumbling after a third place finish in the Iowa caucuses last week.
Clinton, whose husband, former President Bill Clinton, used a second-place finish in New Hampshire to propel himself to the White House, had trailed rival Barack Obama in recent polling.
In the last days, though, she overhauled her campaign operation in the state and took a new tone to the trail. Aides, meanwhile, executed the long-laid ground game that even rivals acknowledged was masterful.
"Over the last week, I listened to you, and in the process I found my own voice," Clinton said at a victory celebration after her win. "Now, together, let's give America the kind of comeback that New Hampshire has just given me."
'Thank you, thank you so much'
The New York senator and former first lady hugged her husband and their daughter, Chelsea, before taking the podium and saying, "thank you, thank you so much" repeatedly.
"I come tonight with a very, very full heart and I want especially to thank New Hampshire," she said. "For all the ups and down of this campaign, you helped remind everyone that politics isn't a game. ... We came back tonight because you spoke loudly and clearly."
"Tomorrow, we're going to get up, roll up our sleeves and keep going," Clinton said to enthusiastic applause.
Key voting blocs were there for Clinton in New Hampshire - or were not there for Obama, depending on how the campaigns frame it. According to exit polling conducted by The Associated Press and the networks, far more women voted than men; Clinton won 45% of them compared to 36% for Obama.
Also according to exit polls, fewer younger voters turned out in New Hampshire than in Iowa, depriving Obama of crucial support.
Clinton's organisation delivered. She hired the state's top political organisers, and the campaign organised down to the local level. They built lists of endorsers and volunteers. They spent more than $5m on 5 000 television ads in New Hampshire media markets.
Despite that, as the summer wore on, Clinton's poll numbers levelled out. Obama built a similar organisation and his name identification crept upward.
When asked on Tuesday morning what she planned to tell supporters Tuesday night, Clinton only offered a cautious "We'll see."
Not enough time
Record turnout hinted she faced a more difficult than predicted challenge from Obama. Her husband, the former president, starting spinning a loss here and blaming the calendar for not giving the campaign time to adjust after Iowa in the state-by-state process of choosing the US presidential nominees.
"The only thing I hate is New Hampshire should have had the customary 10 days after Iowa. If they had, I wouldn't have any doubt about the outcome of this. It's just hard to overcome the media deluge," Bill Clinton said in Seabrook, returning to his frequent criticism of how reporters have covered his wife compared to Obama.
"It's just almost impossible to vote five days after Iowa without being unduly influenced by the media coverage from Iowa. So, you know, that coloured the polls - the switch in the polls for two days - and then we've had a three-day election."
Even without the time, it was enough.
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