Campaigns look ahead after comeback wins
Polls proved to be off in New Hampshire.
Published Jan. 12, 2008
After unexpected victories in the New Hampshire presidential primaries Tuesday evening — which followed disappointing losses at the Iowa caucuses last week — Republican presidential candidate Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., and Democratic candidate Sen. Hillary Clinton, D-N.Y., will face further challenges as they begin to campaign in states where their support bases are less decisive.
McCain, who came in fourth in the Iowa caucuses on Jan. 3, said in his victory speech Tuesday night in Nashua, N.H., that he and his Granite State supporters showed what a comeback looks like.
"Thank you, New Hampshire, from the bottom my heart," McCain said. "I am grateful and humbled and more certain than ever that before I can win your vote, I must win your respect."
In the coming days, McCain will campaign in Michigan, which holds its primary Jan. 15.
According to polling averages conducted by Real Clear Politics, McCain is number two nationally among Republican candidates — coming in behind former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee — however, in Michigan, he rates third behind former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney and Huckabee among Republican voters.
Missouri Sen. Delbert Scott, R-Lowry City, who serves as the Missouri state director of Huckabee's campaign, said the expectations for the former governor to win New Hampshire were low, and that McCain's victory in the state in the 2000 presidential race and the close proximity of New Hampshire to Romney's home state of Massachusetts gave the two candidates an advantage over Huckabee.
"Coming in third place met every expectation," Scott said.
Scott said campaign officials are remaining optimistic, and said the candidate is strong across the nation, especially in South Carolina, where a Republican primary is set for Jan. 19.
Indeed, Huckabee holds, according to the most recent RCP polling average, a commanding lead in South Carolina over McCain and Romney, respectively, but trails Romney in Michigan according to polling averages conducted last month.
Clinton's victory in New Hampshire came more unexpectedly, as the third place finisher at the Iowa Caucus nipped at the heels of Obama in polling averages just days before the primaries.
Like McCain, Clinton thanked her New Hampshire supporters for helping her to make a comeback in the polls.
"For all the ups and downs of this campaign, you helped remind everyone that politics isn't a game," Clinton said in her victory speech Tuesday.
According to polls conducted in the weeks leading up to the primary, Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., was a clear favorite in New Hampshire, and attracted nearly 40 percent of independent voters at the primaries, according to an AP exit poll.
Clinton's surprising upset comes after a speech in New Hampshire Tuesday in which the former first lady, while discussing her aspirations for the presidency, became visibly emotional, which made headlines.
"I have so many opportunities from this country," Clinton said at the speech Monday. "I just don't want to see us fall backwards."
According to New Hampshire exit polling conducted by Edison Media Research and Mitofsky International, Clinton trumped Obama with women voters and voters that see the economy as their top issue.
According to recent RCP polling averages, Clinton leads Obama in the race for the Democratic nomination by 7 percent.
Obama, who led Clinton in New Hampshire polls only after his victory in Iowa and finished only a sliver behind her in the primaries there, spoke optimistically about the outcome in the primaries during his concession speech and congratulated the New York senator.
"For most of the campaign, we were far behind," Obama told supporters Tuesday. "With your voices you made it clear that, at this moment, in this election, there is something happening in America."