Democratic Presidential Candidate Sen. John Kerry Wins New Hampshire Primary
Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass.) on Tuesday "scored a decisive victory" in the New Hampshire Democratic presidential primary, "easily defeating" rival former Vermont Gov. Howard Dean (D), the Washington Post reports. In a race that "appeared likely to set a record for voter turnout," Kerry won 39% of the vote, and Dean won 26%, with 98% of precincts reporting. Retired Army Gen. Wesley Clark (D) and Sen. John Edwards (D-N.C.) each won 12% of the vote, and Sen. Joseph Lieberman (D-Conn.) won 9%; Rep. Dennis Kucinich (D-Ohio) and the Rev. Al Sharpton (D) finished sixth and seventh place, respectively (Balz, Washington Post, 1/28). Kerry last week won the Iowa caucuses (California Healthline, 1/20). Kerry and his advisers said that they plan to conduct a "week-long blitz" in the seven states that will hold Democratic presidential primaries next Tuesday. In a speech on Tuesday night, Kerry said that he would use his candidacy to challenge President Bush and the "influence peddlers, the polluters, the HMOs" and other companies favored by the White House. He added, "I have only just begun to fight" (Washington Post, 1/28). Exit polls conducted by the Edison Media Research and Mitofsky International found that about 30% of voters in New Hampshire cited health care and Medicare as their most important issues; those voters favored Kerry over Dean by 43% to 26% (Mokrzycki, AP/Las Vegas Sun, 1/27).
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