New Hampshire Primary Begins in Tiny Town at Midnight

In a little town just south of the Canadian border, a town with the unlikely name of Dixville Notch, the first seventeen people voted in the New Hampshire primary (albeit four of them by absentee ballot) at midnight, the entire process taking just three minutes, and officially kicked off that state's much anticipated voting for the next president. Of those 17 voters, 12 are Independent, 3 are Republican, and 2 are Democrats. With Barack Obama's recent strong showing among Independents in Iowa, many wanted to see if Obama could maintain his momentum. On the Republican side, the John McCain camp was hoping for new life, wanted the vote to reflect McCain's lead in the New Hampshire polls.

And if Dixville Notch is any indicator of how New Hampshire will go, Obama and McCain are indeed going to win big. Especially Obama. John Edwards will also do alright. But Hillary Clinton will finish third again. Dixville Notch voted 7, 2, 0, respectively (Bill Richardson also received a vote). McCain took the Republican vote with 4, Mitt Romney received 2, and Rudy Giuliani pulled in a single vote.

This could spell doom for what may become known as the Clintonian Assumption, that air of inevitability that came from the Clinton camp for the past several months. But don't count Ms. Clinton out just yet. She has plenty of money and may hold out until Super Tuesday (February 5), when 21 states will host primaries. Another good showing by Edwards may not put him in a position to win, but it may put him in a strong enough position to become Obama's vice-presidential candidate. And, as we all know, vice-president's generally run for president (and sometimes win).

Arizona Senator John McCain's resurgence in New Hampshire could spell trouble for both Mike Huckabee, the surprise winner of the Iowa Caucus, and Romney. But McCain is seen by many as the most winnable of the Republicans, the candidate that can most likely pull Independents and Democrats into his camp to win the general election in November.