The New Hampshire primary, in January of 2008, will help set the stage for Barack Obama’s campaign for the rest of the Democratic primaries, as he will have a better understanding of how is message is being received by voters. Current polls have him in a virtual tie with Hillary Clinton in New Hampshire.
He may be helped by his co-sponsorship of last year’s immigration reform plan as well as his apparent willingness to work with Republicans to mediate compromise on many issues. However, his biggest help from the New Hampshire primary may be in the education he receives as a result and how it affects his appearance in the Democratic debates set to begin nine days after the primary.
Any lessons he learns, whether it be in victory or a crushing defeat, will help better fine-tune the message he is getting out and provide benefits for the future of his campaign. Currently, he is becoming known as the candidate with the best chance of defeating Clinton in New Hampshire, not the candidate seeking the nomination nor as an Illinois Senator. The New Hampshire will help him define his candidacy to the rest of the nation.
The opportunity to use this primary as a solidifying ingredient or as defining a need for a different message will help him get beyond Clinton’s name recognition and John Edward’s seemingly endless cash supply from his well-heeled supporters. Whether he wins or loses, the New Hampshire primary will draw the map Obama uses to get to the following primaries.
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