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All eyes were on New Hampshire this past Tuesday as more than 300,000 Republican Granite Staters packed into polling places and waited in line to participate in the “first in the nation” primary. This year’s contest set a record for turnout, surpassing 2016 figures.
Voters delivered former President Trump his second major victory in the past two weeks, notching an 11-point primary win over former UN Ambassador and South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley. This comes on the heels of his 30-point win at the Iowa Caucuses.
Below are a few of our key takeaways from the race:
1. Once again, the majority of the electorate was age 50 and up.
According to CNN Exit Polls, voters age 50 and over cast 65% of Republican primary ballots up from 57% in 2016 – the last election without an incumbent Republican candidate. Those age 50-64 backed Trump, 55% to 43% over Haley, and those 65+ supported Trump, 53% to 45%.
2. Similar to Iowa, former President Trump won all but one county in the state, but the town-by-town picture is a little more mixed.
New Hampshire totals are reported by town with more than 200 across the state. Nikki Haley carried 59 of these – including the state capital of Concord, suburban Bedford which voted for President Trump in 2016 but flipped to Biden in 2020, and Newmarket, a traditional bellwether of New Hampshire, which previously had picked the winner of the GOP primary since 1952.
3. Immigration and the economy continue to be top issues for Republican primary voters.
Looking across various data sources, it’s clear that immigration and the economy are the top two issues on the minds of Republican primary voters – and folks who say these are their most important issues favor Trump.
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