New Hampshire has defied the Democratic National Committee (DNC) and announced that it will become the first state in the nation to hold its presidential primary in 2020. On Wednesday, Governor Chris Sununu declared that New Hampshire would hold its primary on February 11, making it the earliest contest in the nation.
The DNC had been planning to put a moratorium on most state primaries until after the single national primary on March 3. This move came as part of the DNC’s attempts to give all the states more equal footing in the presidential primary events.
On Wednesday, however, Sununu declared that “no amount of bullying or threats from the DNC, coming out of Washington, landed [New Hampshire] to shift our primary.” He further argued that it was the “core belief” of New Hampshire that the people elect their president and not the party.
Sununu’s decision has been widely praised by the New Hampshire political establishment. Former Republican National Committee chair Steve Duprey, who served on the DNC’s rules committee when the moratorium was passed, noted that while the committee had wanted to give all states a chance to have a fair say in the election process, it had not decided what “fair” meant. Consequently, he praised Sununu’s decision as “a duty of the governor of New Hampshire to defend the state’s primary.”
Sununu’s defiance of the DNC shows the importance of New Hampshire’s primary in the election process. The small northeastern state is often the first to vote in the presidential primary process and as such, can play a decisive role in determining who the eventual Democratic nominee is. Polls have shown that the Granite State is a highly competitive one, with both Republicans and Democrats in close contention in the 2020 contest.
Sununu’s rejection of the national party’s decision is a strong signal that New Hampshire is dedicated to playing its traditional role in the presidential primary process. Sununu’s vision of a more inclusive and locally-focused presidential primary process could set a precedent for other states to follow, creating a more transparent and open election process.