Ron Paul #2 in NH … Democratic Primary!
By Bill McGonigle • 2012/01/12
Everybody already knows that Ron Paul placed second in the New Hampshire 2012 Republican Presidental Primary. But, at 7 o’clock tonight, the New Hampshire Secretary of State published the full results of the primary, including write-ins, and Ron Paul also won the #2 spot in the Democratic Primary.
To be sure, sitting President Barack Obama bested Paul with a 49,480 to 2,273 tally, but that Ron Paul placed so highly in rank tells us a few things. First, nearly twenty-three hundred New Hampshire voters got out and drove to a polling station, knowing they were going to cast a write-in vote, knowing that it was in a primary where no delegates could be assigned to write-in votes, but as a straight protest vote.
Given the insignificance of the voting act under these rules, it is reasonable to assume that many dissatisfied voters stayed home. The numbers bear this out. NH has 223,151 registered Democratic voters, and only 60,996 (27%) turned out. Secretary of State Bill Gardner had predicted a turnout of 75,000 voters in the Democratic Primary. Were write-ins valid for delegate assignment, the numbers would have likely been even higher.
Second, Ron Paul is the second most popular candidate among Democrat voters in NH. This will be crucially important when the general election rolls around. Ron Paul already won 50% of the Independent vote in the Republican primary. The ability to build consensus and pull in Independent and other-party voters is essential to achieve a victory in the general election. […]
Ron Paul’s strong support among Democrats can be tied to many issues. From his strong anti-war message to his assessment of the obvious failure of the drug war, his fight for racial equality in the justice system, his battle against inflation or his unique budget plan which fully funds Social Security, Medicare, and Veterans’ benefits (without relying on the continuing willingness of China to buy US debt as the other candidates’ plans do) – Ron Paul’s platform delivers what many Democratic candidates only pay lip service to. … Full article
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