January 6th, 2008
by Lauren Melcher
First published on the Minneapolis Star-Tribune's Oles in '08 Blog http://nc.startribune.com/blogs/oles/?p=72
What we're seeing here in New Hampshire this weekend is truly monumental. But at its heart, this primary is also quite elemental.
In New Hampshire , elections are not made or broken by the national media. They are made by candidates who speak to voters' hearts, who shake their hands and look them in the eye and say “If you go out and support me on January 8th, I will support you every day as your President.” These are the elements of grassroots politics, something I thought was dying in America .
But New Hampshire is different than my voting experiences in California and Minnesota , where voters mostly learn about candidates through newspapers and television ads. Campaigns in New Hampshire seem to be most effective when they stick to old-fashioned basics. My classmates make phone calls for hours on end; they trudge through snowbanks to post signs; they write letters to undecided voters and paint signs, and sometimes, they feel like the work will never end. The building blocks of campaigns are alive and well here in a place where town hall meetings and rallies are just as influential as ads and endorsements.
And then there's the other elemental dimension of this monumental phenomenon. While the campaigns run on the basic elements of hard work and perseverance, the people behind the campaigns (and the cameras covering the campaigns) are in their element too. Never before in my life have I been surrounded by so many people who are so openly passionate and enthusiastic about politics.
Volunteers, journalists, campaign staffers and candidates alike — everyone wants to be here, and really does care about the outcome of this primary. The new President will not be elected until November, but the enthusiasm of these people isn't going anywhere. And that is a great thing, because voters across the nation will benefit from an election that is run by passionate people, covered by a thoughtful and engaged media, and features candidates who are deeply committed to winning the hearts and minds of voters.
