HOOKSETT, N.H. — Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders handily defeated Hillary Clinton in New Hampshire, a state that Clinton won eight years ago and where she was leading by 40 points in polls a year ago.
With 100 percent of precincts reporting, Sanders won with 60.4 percent, while Clinton had 38 percent. The race was called for Sanders shortly after the polls closed at 8 p.m.
Sanders’ primary win is a victory for his brand of democratic socialism that has found a following among the Democratic electorate. It’s also a stinging defeat for Clinton, who narrowly won the Iowa caucuses and is leading in polls among voters in the South.
“We won because we harnessed the energy and the excitement that the Democratic Party will need to succeed in November,” Sanders said at a victory rally in Concord, N.H. “What happened here in New Hampshire in terms of an enthusiastic and aroused electorate, people who came out in large numbers, that is what will happen all over this country.”
“And let us never forget Democrats and progressives win when voter turn out is high,” he continued. “Republicans win when people are demoralized and voter turn out is low.”
Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders smiles after winning, at his 2016 New Hampshire presidential primary night rally in Concord, New Hampshire February 9, 2016. (REUTERS/Rick Wilking)
The Real Clear Politics polling average had Sanders leading 54.5 percent to Clinton’s 41.2 percent in New Hampshire before the vote.
“I want to congratulate Sen. Sanders on his victory tonight,” Clinton said at a rally in Southern New Hampshire University’s basketball gymnasium. “I still love New Hampshire. … Now we our campaign to every state.”
Clinton, who appeared with former President Bill Clinton and her daughter Chelsea, acknowledged the anti-establishment anger among Democratic voters and presented herself as someone who can implement her agenda in Washington. “People have every right to be angry, but people are also hungry for solutions.”
Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton arrives with her daughter Chelsea Clinton (rear) to speak to supporters at her final 2016 New Hampshire presidential primary night rally in Hooksett, New Hampshire Feb. 9, 2016. (REUTERS/Brian Snyder)
The question for voters, she said, is: “Who is the best change-maker?”
Clinton also acknowledged Sanders’ giant support among young voters. “I know I have some work to do, particularly with young people,” she said. “Even if they don’t support me, I support them.”
Sanders staked his position firmly to the left of Clinton with a message of economic populism, calling for raising taxes on the rich to provide all sorts of free services and jobs for the middle and lower classes.
His campaign is pushing for a federal jobs program, free college and pre-K education, student loan debt relief, a single-payer universal health-care system. One of his top priorities is limiting the influence of big money in politics and of breaking up the large financial institutions in the U.S.
Clinton, on the other hand, offered herself as a practical progressive whose election would be a big step forward for the feminist movement. She campaigned here on continuing President Barack Obama’s legacy, on highlighting her foreign policy experience, and on standing up for the rights of women, gays and minorities.
Clinton’s campaign had tried to lower expectations, saying that she was never favored to win. Democratic candidates from neighboring states almost always have won in the past.
Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton is accompanied by her daughter Chelsea Clinton (R) and her husband, former U.S. President Bill Clinton, as she speaks to supporters at her final 2016 New Hampshire presidential primary night rally in Hooksett, New Hampshire February 9, 2016. (REUTERS/Adrees Latif)
In the final week of the primary, Bill Clinton claimed some Sanders supporters were making “sexist” remarks online against Clinton surrogates. Campaign spokesman Brian Fallon also argued that Sanders was personally attacking Clinton, even though the Vermont senator rarely mentions Clinton by name on the campaign trail. For example, at a rally in Portsmouth, N.H. Sunday, Sanders referenced Clinton’s name once, saying that she voted for the Iraq War. He also referenced Goldman Sachs speaking fees, without saying her name.
The supporters at Clinton’s rally were energetic, chanting “I believe that we will win,” “I’m with her,” and “Madame President.”
“I think Hillary has a really solid plan, and that’s why I voted for her,” said Kat Howland, who is from Dover, N.H. “I just think that sometimes you need to make sure that the person you’re supporting has the ability to actually act on what they’re saying.”
“I feel like there are a lot of big promises that I’m not sure Bernie Sanders can deliver on, and like I said, Hillary has a pathway to success,” Howland told The Daily Caller.
Another supporter, Elizabeth Pageotte from Northern Virginia, blamed “naive kids who haven’t done their research” for supporting Sanders.
The race now moves to South Carolina, where the primary is scheduled for Feb. 27.