# 2008 New Hampshire Republican presidential primary

Elections in New Hampshire :
Federal government
Presidential elections
1788–89
1792
1796
1800
1804
1808
1812
1816
1820
1824
1828
1832
1836
1840
1844
1848
1852
1856
1860
1864
1868
1872
1876
1880
1884
1888
1892
1896
1900
1904
1908
1912
1916
1920
1924
1928
1932
1936
1940
1944
1948
1952
1956
1960
1964
1968
1972
1976
1980
1984
1988
1992
1996
2000
2004
2008
2012
2016
2020
2024
Presidential primaries
Democratic
1952
1956
1960
1964
1968
1972
1976
1980
1984
1988
1992
1996
2000
2004
2008
2012
2016
2020
2024
Republican
1952
1956
1960
1964
1968
1972
1976
1980
1984
1988
1992
1996
2000
2004
2008
2012
2016
2020
2024
Local
Dixville Notch
Hart's Location
United States Senate elections
1788
1789
1792
1794
1798
1798 (sp)
1800
1801 (sp)
1802 (sp)
1804
1807
1810
1810 (sp)
1813 (sp)
1814 (sp)
1816
1817 (sp)
1818
1819
1823
1825
1846 (sp)
1831
1835
1836 (sp)
1837
1841
1842 (sp)
1843
1846
1852
1855
1855 (sp)
1857 (sp)
1859
1861
1864
1870
1872
1876
1879 (sp)
1883 (sp)
1885 (sp)
1887 (sp)
1889 (sp)
1891
1895
1897
1901
1903
1907
1909
1913
1914
1918
1918 (sp)
1920
1924
1926
1930
1932
1936
1938
1942
1944
1948
1950
1954
1954 (sp)
1956
1960
1962
1962 (sp)
1966
1968
1972
1974/5
1978
1980
1984
1986
1990
1992
1996
1998
2002
2004
2008
2010
2014
2016
2020
2022
United States House elections
1789
1789 (sp)
1790
1792
1794
1796
1797 (sp)
1798
1799 (sp)
1800 (sp)
1800
1802 (sp)
1802
1804
1806
1808
1810/1811
1812
1814
1814 (sp)
1816
1819
1820
1822/1823
1824/1825
1825 (sp)
1827
1829
1831
1833
1835
1837
1839
1841
1843
1845/1846
1847
1849
1851
1853
1855
1857
1859
1861
1863
1865
1867
1869
1871
1873
1875
1877
1878
1880
1882
1884
1886
1888
1890
1892
1894
1896
1898
1900
1902
1904
1906
1908
1910
1912
1914
1916
1917 (sp 1st)
1920
1928
1938
1940
1942
1944
1946
1954
1956
1968
1972
1980
1984
1992
1994
1996
1998
2000
2002
2004
2006
2008
2010
2012
2014
2016
2018
2020
2022
2024 :
State government
Gubernatorial elections
1800
1801
1802
1803
1804
1805
1806
1807
1808
1809
1810
1811
1812
1813
1814
1815
1816
1817
1818
1819
1820
1821
1822
1823
1824
1825
1826
1827
1828
1829
1830
1831
1832
1833
1834
1835
1836
1837
1838
1839
1840
1841
1842
1843
1844
1845
1846
1847
1848
1849
1850
1851
1852
1853
1854
1855
1856
1857
1858
1859
1860
1861
1862
1863
1864
1865
1866
1867
1868
1869
1870
1871
1872
1873
1874
1875
1876
1877
Mar. 1878
Nov. 1878
1880
1882
1884
1886
1888
1890
1892
1894
1896
1898
1900
1902
1904
1906
1908
1910
1912
1914
1916
1918
1920
1922
1924
1926
1928
1930
1932
1934
1936
1938
1940
1942
1944
1946
1948
1950
1952
1954
1956
1958
1960
1962
1964
1966
1968
1970
1972
1974
1976
1978
1980
1982
1984
1986
1988
1990
1992
1994
1996
1998
2000
2002
2004
2006
2008
2010
2012
2014
2016
2018
2020
2022
2024
Executive Council elections
2018
2020
2022
2024
General Court elections
2004
2006
Senate elections
2016
2018
2020
2022
2024
House elections
2018
2020
2022
2024 :
Manchester
Mayoral elections
19th century
1846
1847
1848
1849
1850
1851
1852
1853
1854
1855
1856 (Mar)
1856 (Nov)
1857
1858
1859
1860
1861
1862
1863
1864
1865
1866
1867
1868
1869
1870
1871
1872
1873
1875
1876
1877
1878 (Mar)
1878 (Nov)
1880
1882
1884
1886
1888
1890
1892
1894
1896
1898
1900
20th century
1902
1904
1906
1908
1910
1912
1914
1915
1917
1919
1921
1923
1925
1927
1929
1931
1933
1935
1937
1939
1941
1943
1945
1947
1949
1951
1953
1955
1957
1959
1961
1963
1965
1967
1969
1971
1973
1975
1977
1979
1981
1983
1985
1987
1989
1991
1993
1995
1997
1999
21st century
2001
2003
2005
2007
2009
2011
2013
2015
2017
2019
2021
2023 :
vte :
The 2008 New Hampshire Republican presidential primary took place on January 8, 2008, with 12 national delegates being allocated proportionally to the popular vote.
Senator from Arizona John McCain won the contest with 37% of the vote and 7 pledged delegates. McCain's victory was described by The New York Times as a "Lazarus-like win" that "revived his presidential bid" following a disappointing showing in the 2008 Iowa caucuses.

## Background and campaign

During the 2000 Republican contest held eight years prior, Senator John McCain defeated frontrunner and eventual nominee George W. Bush in the New Hampshire primary in an upset victory.
In the 2008 primary, Mitt Romney, the former governor of neighboring Massachusetts, invested significant campaign resources in the state. Romney's defeat in the New Hampshire primary to McCain was considered a significant blow for his campaign.

### Polling

In the days leading up to the primary, John McCain appeared to gain a slight lead over Mitt Romney. An average of polling found McCain with 31.8%, Romney, 28.2%, Huckabee with 12.2%, Giuliani with 9.3%, Paul with 8.2%, and Thompson with 2.2%.

## Results

The official return was certified by the New Hampshire Secretary of State on 9 January. According to New Hampshire law, delegates are allocated proportionally with a minimum 10% threshold required to receive delegates. The balance of delegates that are not assigned are then allocated to the winner.
Independent voters made up 44 percent of the state electorate and could choose to vote in either this primary or the Democratic contest held on the same day, but voters could not vote in both.
| Candidate | Votes | Percentage | Delegates |
| John McCain | 88,571 | 37.71% | 7 |
| Mitt Romney | 75,546 | 32.17% | 4 |
| Mike Huckabee | 26,859 | 11.44% | 1 |
| Rudy Giuliani | 20,439 | 8.7% | 0 |
| Ron Paul | 18,308 | 7.8% | 0 |
| Fred Thompson | 2,890 | 1.23% | 0 |
| Duncan Hunter | 1,217 | 0.52% | 0 |
| Alan Keyes | 203 | 0.09% | 0 |
| Stephen Marchuk | 123 | 0.05% | 0 |
| Tom Tancredo* | 80 | 0.03% | 0 |
| Dr Hugh Cort | 53 | 0.02% | 0 |
| Cornelius Edward O'Connor | 45 | 0.02% | 0 |
| Albert Howard | 44 | 0.02% | 0 |
| Vern Wuensche | 44 | 0.02% | 0 |
| Vermin Supreme | 41 | 0.02% | 0 |
| John H. Cox | 39 | 0.02% | 0 |
| Daniel Gilbert | 33 | 0.01% | 0 |
| James Creighton Mitchell Jr. | 30 | 0.01% | 0 |
| Jack Shepard | 27 | 0.01% | 0 |
| Mark Klein | 19 | 0.01% | 0 |
| H. Neal Fendig Jr. | 13 | 0% | 0 |
| Scattered | 227 | 0.1% | 0 |
| Total | 234,851 | 100% | 12 |
* Candidate had already dropped out of the race prior to primary.

## Recount

Most New Hampshire voters cast their votes on vulnerable Diebold optical-scan systems, leading election-reform activists to immediately begin examining the results from New Hampshire, claiming later to find evidence suggesting fraud.
Republican presidential nominee candidate Albert Howard joined forces with Ron Paul supporters bankrolling a full recount of the Republican primary. The Republican recount began on Wednesday January 16.
The story initially was reported only online, but was later acknowledged by mainstream news outlets. Most observers have concluded that demographic trends influence both a community's means of counting ballots, and which candidates the community is likely to support.
On January 10, 2008, presidential candidate Dennis Kucinich requested and paid for a recount to make sure that all of the votes in the Democratic primary were counted - Republican candidate Albert Howard also requested a recount in the Republican primary.
The recount began on January 16, 2008, after New Hampshire Secretary of State Bill Gardner received $27,000 from Kucinich. The first ballots to be counted came from Manchester. The campaigns and fair elections groups had the right to see and approve every ballot. In the GOP recount the votes for all candidates were exactly the same except for Mitt Romney who received 1 extra vote. With $55,600, Albert Howard is the first person in U.S. history to receive a statewide New Hampshire Primary Recount.
The Deputy Secretary of State, David Scanlan, estimated that the Republican recount cost $57,600 and the Democratic recount, with more votes cast, cost $67,600.
According to Howard's campaign Web site, some of his primary objectives include banning electronic voting. Quin Monson, an assistant professor in the Department of Political Science at BYU, commented: "There are people that do not trust the technology. [The] request for the recount is likely a response to that crowd."