Greetings from the Granite state.
NBC10 is on the ground in New Hampshire, where it’s colder than Iowa and just as full of candidates making their last-minute case to voters.
We wondered as we arrived here whether we would - as we did in Iowa - find voters still undecided about who to choose with just two days left. The answer is yes.
“Originally it was between Amy (Klobuchar) and Bernie (Sanders) and Elizabeth (Warren),” Chris Rosenwasser said. “Then I started reading about Michael Bennet today - so I’m all over the map.”
Rosenwasser was among the voters who told us seeing candidates in person - something New Hampshire voters have the chance to do in school gyms and churches and hotels leading up to the primary - makes a difference for them.
“You get to see them up close and personal,” said Gail Brinkley, at her second event of the day (Biden then Klobuchar) on Sunday. “People ask sometimes pointed questions so it’s good to see how they think on their feet. It’s telling for us.”
As candidates have stepped up criticism of and pointed contrasts with their fellow Democrats, some New Hampshire voters are signaling that they don’t like the shift in tone.
Politics
“I don’t like the criticism, I don’t like the poking at each other,” said Janine Gawryl, coming out of a Biden event in Hampton. “That was one negative that Biden did the other day when he poked at Buttigieg.”
Biden’s campaign released an ad this weekend comparing his record as former Vice President to that of former South Bend Mayor Buttigieg.
“When President Obama called on him, Joe Biden helped lead the passage of the Affordable Care Act which gave health care to 20 million people,” the ad says, then adding: “And when park-goers called on Pete Buttigieg he installed decorative lights under bridges giving citizens of South Bend colorfully illuminated rivers.”
Buttigieg’s campaign countered that South Bend residents “don't think their lives are a Washington politician's punchline.” Without mentioning Biden, Buttigieg told a crowd in Devon on Sunday that “mayors get things done.”
Asked about a more heated race, New Hampshire voter Sean Albert said he’s taking it into consideration as he makes his decision on who gets his vote.
“We are paying attention on the infighting if there’s going to be any dirty politics coming out who throws out the first punch does play a part with me,” Albert said. “I appreciate the candidates who keep it true, keep it honest.”
