Nevada moves up its caucus, forcing N.H. to look at possible primary date in December
Could New Hampshire vote in the Republican presidential primary for 2012 in 2011?
That head-scratching outcome is possible now that Nevada has joined Arizona and Florida in pushing forward the date for its caucus.
Secretary of State Bill Gardner will not set the first-in-the-nation primary until the filing period for candidates begins Oct. 17. But under a domino effect caused by Nevada Republicans’ decision yesterday to set their caucus date for Jan. 14, if New Hampshire were to abide by its state law and traditions and vote in early January, it would push Iowa into Christmastime.
“I don’t expect we’ll be part of pushing Iowa onto Christmas Day or around Christmas,’’ Gardner said. When asked if New Hampshire could vote before Christmas in December, he responded that it could.
If so, it would be the first time in history that New Hampshire voted in the year before an election. Former state Representative Jim Spaine, a Democrat who wrote the law codifying New Hampshire’s first in the nation primary, said he hopes Nevada Republicans will change their minds.
“The powers that be in Nevada…should be reconsidering their decision,’’ Splaine said. “It would make it more difficult for all of the Republicans to get their messages out. There would be obviously fewer debates, less dialogue. It would create havoc with their advertising, and it’s Nevada’s fault at this point.’’
In addition to shortening the campaign season, the jockeying could affect the momentum candidates get from each race.
The Las Vegas Review-Journal reported that the Romney campaign lobbied Nevada Republicans to move their caucuses to January. Romney leads in polls for the New Hampshire primary, and is hoping to win Nevada. The Review-Journal reported that Romney wanted to gain momentum from those states going into Florida’s contest.
In response, Paul Collins, New Hampshire senior adviser to former Utah Governor Jon Huntsman, who is also counting on doing well in New Hampshire, accused the Romney campaign of “trying to game the system for their own benefit and at the detriment of Granite Staters.’’ “Their move could harm the future of holding the first in the nation primary in New Hampshire,’’ Collins said.
Romney spokesman Ryan Williams said Romney “is firmly committed to preserving New Hampshire’s first-in-the-nation primary and the critical role it plays in selecting our Republican nominee.’’
Williams said Romney will compete in every nominating contest across the country, regardless of schedule. “It is up to each state to determine the date of their primary or caucus, and Governor Romney has consistently supported Nevada’s status as an early nominating contest that follows New Hampshire,’’ Williams said.
The Republican and Democratic parties originally envisioned a calendar with Iowa, New Hampshire, Nevada and South Carolina voting in February, with the other states holding their contests in March. But as in past years, other states have been jockeying for earlier positions. Arizona first broke the party rules by scheduling its primary for Feb. 28. Florida last week moved up to Jan. 31.
State law instructs Gardner to set the New Hampshire primary a week before any similar contest. That means the earliest New Hampshire would vote would be Saturday, Jan. 7. Gardner said a Saturday primary is unlikely because of the concerns of Orthodox Jews, who cannot vote on the Jewish Sabbath. Gardner said every presidential primary since 1916, every non-presidential primary and every general election in New Hampshire has been held on a Tuesday.
New Hampshire could vote Jan. 3 – five days earlier than the state’s 2008 primary. But that would push the Iowa caucuses – which by law must be eight days before another primary or caucus– into Christmas. Though Iowa has not always upheld the eight-day rule, Gardner, in an interview, implied that he would not push Iowa or New Hampshire into the week between Christmas and New Year’s. But, he said, “There are a lot of variables here.’’
Gardner said he had no need to set the calendar immediately. “I’ve always waited until I knew that once I set it, it would fulfill the honor and tradition of the primary and it would be according to state law,’’ he said. “I don’t need to do it right now.’’
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