New Hampshire Hates That It Loves Donald Trump

Clearly the fears about a Trump victory in New Hampshire go beyond wounded pride. The alarming version is that a Trump win would pose a kind of existential threat to “New Hampshire” as a political phenomenon. That’s no small worry to a state whose identity is profoundly wrapped up in its distinctive political traditions — the diner visits, the house parties, the town hall meetings, the “Politics and Eggs” breakfasts.

Some fret it would imperil the state’s status as the first primary state in the nation, a position that one 2000 estimate found was worth more than $250 million to the state economy. A state law is meant to guarantee its position indefinitely, but staying there also depends on tolerance by the national party and the candidates themselves. One of New Hampshire’s main selling points has always been that voters here are supposedly more perceptive than the average American, a premise that a Trump victory would presumably weaken.

From: New Hampshire Hates That It Loves Donald Trump