Former President Donald Trump and his former ambassador. Nikki Haley returns neck and neck early from Tuesday’s first primary in New Hampshire.
Trump hopes to score another landslide victory after his 30-point victory in the Iowa caucuses last Monday.
Haley is the only rival left after Florida Governor Ron DeSantis dramatically dropped out of the race on Sunday.
She’s keeping her fingers crossed for an upset, or a close second, in a state filled with independent-minded voters, who often choose a candidate other than the winner of the Iowa caucus.
The majority of polling places closed at 7:00 PM ET and the rest closed at 8:00 PM ET.
The Associated Press had Trump at 53 percent and Haley at 46 percent, with only 9 percent of votes counted as of 7:30 p.m. ET.
In the latest DailyMail.com poll in New Hampshire, Trump was 20 points ahead of Haley, drawing support from 57 percent of potential Republican voters, up from 37 percent.
Former President Donald Trump surprised his supporters on Tuesday by showing up at a polling station in Londonderry, New Hampshire. Trump hopes a big win in the Granite State will oust his last rival, Nikki Haley
Former UN Ambassador. Nikki Haley (left) greets supporters next to New Hampshire Governor Chris Sununu at a polling place in Bedford, New Hampshire
Nikki Haley’s future in the White House race hangs in the balance as the latest DailyMail.com poll in New Hampshire shows Donald Trump 20 points ahead heading into the primaries
On Tuesday, Trump and Haley — with armies of surrogates and volunteers — blanketed the state as the ex-president made a surprise stop at a polling station in Londonderry.
“I’m very confident,” Trump said, adding that he “doesn’t care” if Haley stays inside. “Let her do whatever she wants, it doesn’t matter,” the ex-president said, saying he was predicting disaster. ‘great loss’ for former South Carolina governor.
Haley, who banned DailyMail.com from reporting on her events in New Hampshire after reporting on her alleged affairs, visited a polling place in Hampton with New Hampshire Gov. Chris Sununu and showed off Republican Senate candidate Don Bolduc 2022, by her side.
The former U.N. ambassador got some good news early Tuesday morning, when all six New Hampshire voters voting in the far northern town of Dixville Notch chose her as their preferred candidate.
“It’s great to get the first six votes,” she told reporters outside Winnacunnet High School. “It gave us good energy and momentum.”
The early exit polls also appeared to be favorable territory for Haley, who is counting on support from independents and moderates to close the gap with Trump – who led by double digits in New Hampshire in the latest polls.
NBC’s exit polls showed that among those who voted in Tuesday’s Republican primary, a minority (47 percent) identified as Republicans, while 45 percent said they were independents and 8 percent said they were Democrats.
Trump complained that Democrats infiltrated the New Hampshire primary to support Haley, even though voters who chose to do so had an October deadline to switch parties.
New Hampshire voters in Francestown cast their ballots Tuesday in the nation’s first primary election. Republican voters will choose between former President Donald Trump or his former UN ambassador. Nikki Haley
Former President Donald Trump (right) greets a young supporter during a surprise stop at a polling station in Londonderry on Tuesday. Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene (left) stood next to the former president
Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley hugs a supporter outside Winnacunnet High School in Hampton, New Hampshire, on Tuesday
In 2016, the last time there was a competitive Republican Party primary, the Republican primary was made up of 55 percent Republicans, 42 percent independents and 3 percent Democratic voters.
Trump won the New Hampshire primary that year.
Turnout Tuesday appeared high because the weather was much better than the Iowa caucuses, which took place in subzero temperatures and after two snowstorms eight days earlier.
Temperatures remained in the mid to high 30s all day, with Manchester experiencing flurries as the sun set.
Voting across the state appeared to proceed without major problems, according to Secretary of State spokesperson Anna Sventek.
Assistant Attorney General Brendan O’Donnell, chief of the Election Law Division, agreed, saying it was a “great morning” with no “major issues.”
O’Donnell said his office was dealing with “typical complaints” from voters affiliated with one party who wanted to vote in the other party’s primaries.
Such complaints come in every year, he said.
New Hampshire’s Democratic voters had the option of writing in President Joe Biden’s name, who did not appear on the ballot, or choosing one of the president’s challengers: Minnesota Rep. Dean Phillips or self-help guru Marianne Williamson.
In a measure approved by Biden, the Democratic National Committee rescheduled the Democratic primary with South Carolinians going first, but New Hampshire law and the state’s Republican leadership did not allow the early primary date to be moved.