2008 New Hampshire Republican presidential primary

During the 2000 Republican contest held eight years prior, Senator John McCain defeated frontrunner and eventual nominee George W. Bush in the New Hampshire primary in an upset victory.{{Cite web |last=Balz |first=Dan |date=February 2, 2000 |title=McCain Stuns Bush in N.H. Primary |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/WPcap/2000-02/02/012r-020200-idx.html |access-date=March 8, 2023 |website=Washington Post}}

In the 2008 primary, Mitt Romney, the former governor of neighboring Massachusetts, invested significant campaign resources in the state. Romney's defeat in the New Hampshire primary to McCain was considered a significant blow for his campaign.{{Cite news |last=Healy |first=Patrick |last2=Cooper |first2=Michael |date=2008-01-08 |title=Clinton Stuns Obama; McCain Wins |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/08/us/politics/08cnd-campaign.html |access-date=2023-03-09 |issn=0362-4331}}

{{see also|Statewide opinion polling for the 2008 Republican Party presidential primaries#New Hampshire}}

In the days leading up to the primary, John McCain appeared to gain a slight lead over Mitt Romney. An average of polling found McCain with 31.8%, Romney, 28.2%, Huckabee with 12.2%, Giuliani with 9.3%, Paul with 8.2%, and Thompson with 2.2%.[http://www.realclearpolitics.com/epolls/2008/president/nh/new_hampshire_republican_primary-193.html RealClearPolitics – Election 2008 – New Hampshire Republican Primary]

The official return was certified by the New Hampshire Secretary of State on 9 January.{{cite web |url=http://www.sos.nh.gov/presprim2008/rpressum.htm |title=Presidential Primary Election January 8 |access-date=2008-01-11 |publisher=New Hampshire Secretary of State |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080706124227/http://www.sos.nh.gov/presprim2008/rpressum.htm |archive-date=2008-07-06 }} According to New Hampshire law, delegates are allocated proportionally with a minimum 10% threshold required to receive delegates. The balance of delegates that are not assigned are then allocated to the winner.

Independent voters made up 44 percent of the state electorate and could choose to vote in either this primary or the Democratic contest held on the same day, but voters could not vote in both.{{Cite web |date=6 January 2008 |title=Tuesday could be independents' day in N.H. |url=http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/front/5431385.html}}

* Candidate had already dropped out of the race prior to primary.

Most New Hampshire voters cast their votes on vulnerable Diebold optical-scan systems, leading election-reform activists to immediately begin examining the results from New Hampshire, claiming later to find evidence suggesting fraud.{{cite web|url=http://machinist.salon.com/feature/2008/01/11/new_hampshire_vote/|title=Was the New Hampshire vote stolen?|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080113131716/http://machinist.salon.com/feature/2008/01/11/new_hampshire_vote/|archive-date=2008-01-13}}

Republican presidential nominee candidate Albert Howard joined forces with Ron Paul supporters bankrolling a full recount of the Republican primary.{{cite web|url=http://www.concordmonitor.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080112/FRONTPAGE/801120402/1043/NEWS01|title=Concord Monitor - Primary votes to be recounted|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080115085628/http://www.concordmonitor.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=%2F20080112%2FFRONTPAGE%2F801120402%2F1043%2FNEWS01|archive-date=2008-01-15}} The Republican recount began on Wednesday January 16.{{cite magazine|url=http://blog.wired.com/27bstroke6/2008/01/new-hampshire-t.html|title=New Hampshire to Recount Ballots in Light of Controversy|magazine=Wired|last1=Zetter|first1=Kim}}

The story initially was reported only online, but was later acknowledged by mainstream news outlets. Most observers have concluded that demographic trends influence both a community's means of counting ballots, and which candidates the community is likely to support.{{cite news |url=http://www.boston.com/news/local/new_hampshire/articles/2008/01/11/experts_skeptical_of_nh_ballot_count_conspiracy_theory/

|title= Experts skeptical of N.H. ballot-count conspiracy theory |work=The Boston Globe |author=Beverley Wang |publisher= AP |access-date=2008-03-14 | date=2008-01-11}}

On January 10, 2008, presidential candidate Dennis Kucinich requested and paid for a recount to make sure that all of the votes in the Democratic primary were counted - Republican candidate Albert Howard also requested a recount in the Republican primary.{{cite news|url=http://news.bostonherald.com/news/2008/view.bg?articleid=1066072|title=Kucinich claim spurs N.H. recount|work=Boston Herald|publisher=AP|access-date=2008-03-14|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080311134002/http://news.bostonherald.com/news/2008/view.bg?articleid=1066072|archive-date=2008-03-11|url-status=dead}}

The recount began on January 16, 2008, after New Hampshire Secretary of State Bill Gardner received $27,000 from Kucinich. The first ballots to be counted came from Manchester. The campaigns and fair elections groups had the right to see and approve every ballot. In the GOP recount the votes for all candidates were exactly the same except for Mitt Romney who received 1 extra vote. With $55,600, Albert Howard is the first person in U.S. history to receive a statewide New Hampshire Primary Recount.{{cite news |url=http://www.nashuatelegraph.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080127/NEWS08/332865883/-1/news |title=Recounting and recalling the N.H. presidential primary |author=Kevin Landrigan |date=2008-01-27 |access-date=2008-03-14 |archive-date=April 23, 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080423175248/http://www.nashuatelegraph.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080127/NEWS08/332865883/-1/news |url-status=dead }}

The Deputy Secretary of State, David Scanlan, estimated that the Republican recount cost $57,600 and the Democratic recount, with more votes cast, cost $67,600.{{cite news |url= http://www.unionleader.com/article.aspx?articleId=ac275a70-9424-467c-8e4d-5517a7000163 |work= New Hampshire Union Leader |title= Recounts aren't cheap |author= Tom Fahey |date= 2008-01-15 |access-date= 2008-03-14 |archive-date= 2011-05-22 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20110522193005/http://www.unionleader.com/article.aspx?articleId=ac275a70-9424-467c-8e4d-5517a7000163 |url-status= dead }}

According to Howard's campaign Web site, some of his primary objectives include banning electronic voting. Quin Monson, an assistant professor in the Department of Political Science at BYU, commented: "There are people that do not trust the technology. [The] request for the recount is likely a response to that crowd."{{cite news |url=http://newsnet.byu.edu/story.cfm/66978 |title=New Hampshire Recount Garners Little Attention |work=BYU Newsnet |author=Erica Teichert |date=2008-01-16 |access-date=2008-03-14 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080220091738/http://newsnet.byu.edu/story.cfm/66978 |archive-date=2008-02-20 |url-status=dead }}

• 2008 New Hampshire Democratic presidential primary
• New Hampshire primary
• 2008 Republican Party presidential primaries

{{Reflist}}

• [http://www.nhgop.org New Hampshire Republican State Committee Official Website]

{{2008 Republican primaries}}

{{2008 United States presidential election}}

{{U.S. presidential primaries}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:2008 New Hampshire Republican Primary}}

Category:2008 United States Republican presidential primaries by state

Category:2008 New Hampshire elections

Category:New Hampshire Republican primaries