By Ed O'Keefe
washingtonpost.com
Monday, October 29, 2007; 7:07 PM

CONCORD, N.H. -- Now that Iowa Democrats and Republicans have set the date of their presidential caucuses for Jan. 3, 2008, all eyes are on New Hampshire Secretary of State Bill Gardner, who has exclusive power to set the date of the Granite State's primary.

Iowa's action locks in the earliest start ever for the presidential primary-caucus season, but Gardner potentially could chart new frontiers in the electoral process by scheduling New Hampshire's primary as early as Dec. 4, in order to preserve its status as the first in the nation.

Presidential candidates, campaign staffers, journalists, New Hampshire hoteliers and the rest of the political world eagerly await his decision, which could come any time after Nov. 2, the deadline for candidates to file in the New Hampshire primary. And with so much riding on that decision, Gardner is beginning to feel the heat.

Ask the super-cautious Gardner when the primary will be, and he freezes, his shoulders and head dropping. He flashes a look that combines annoyance, disgust, helplessness, and exhaustion.

So many factors will account for his final decision, and Gardner admits it wears on him.

"I sleep OK, but I think a lot about it," he said last Friday in an interview seen in part on washingtonpost.com's "PostTalk" video interview program. "Particularly if you're in a position where the choices are 'Which of these choices is the least bad?'"

As the guardian of New Hampshire's storied role in presidential politics, Gardner is wary of efforts by Michigan to move up its primary date to Jan. 15 and try to steal some of New Hamphsire's thunder as the first-in-the-nation primary state.

Depending on who you ask, Gardner has several choices. He could call for the primary to be held in early or mid-December, well before the holidays, in the calendar year before the general election. Others suggest he will call for the primary on Jan. 5, 2008, two days after the Iowa caucuses. Many suspect he will decide on Tuesday Jan. 8, 2008.

Leaders of the New Hampshire political establishment publicly support Gardner, whatever he finally decides. But privately, some of them reportedly are worried about the consequences of a December primary that might produce a backlash that would lead to major revisions of the nominating process for 2012 and diminish New Hampshire's role.

Gardner spent part of last Friday afternoon contemplating his decision with a reporter. Earlier, Rep. Dennis Kucinich (D-Ohio) filed his paperwork with Gardner, becoming the 23rd candidate to file to run in the primary. Gardner has overseen these responsibilities since 1976.

"I like the open process. I like the opportunity for any person's son or daughter to someday grow up and be president, and that there be a place that allows for individuals who want to try to become president to actually be able to do that," Gardner said.

He appeared pleased by the Iowa Democratic Party's decision to hold its caucus on Jan. 3, 2008, the same day as Iowa Republicans. He has spoken regularly with Iowa's secretary of state and Iowa party officials about the process, in an effort to preserve their shared "first in the nation" status.

Gardner is bothered by the comments of Democratic Party chairman Howard Dean, who says New Hampshire's primary role should be "diminished." That suggests to him that people may think New Hampshire residents are insensitive "to the issues and concerns of others that are not like us," he said.

He listed several reasons to think otherwise. One-time New Hampshire Sen. John Parker Hale was a leading anti-slavery senator. The Nashua Dodgers of Nashua, N.H., became the first racially integrated minor league baseball team in 1946, when the team started Don Newcombe and Roy Campanella. The warm reception they earned from Nashua residents convinced Brooklyn Dodgers coach Branch Rickey to start Jackie Robinson, Gardner said.

The final decision on a primary also creates potential religious conflicts that Gardner hinted may be factors in his final decision. He recalled a recent meeting with Greek Orthodox leaders who begged him to not hold the primary on Jan. 8, the day after Christmas on the Julian Calendar. Then there's the state representative who is an Orthodox Jew, who thanked Gardner for saying he would prefer not to hold the primary on a Saturday, the Jewish Sabbath. These examples, Gardner said, illustrate that New Hampshire faces the same issues of diversity as all the other states.

At an exhibit on the New Hampshire primary tradition at the New Hampshire Historical Society, across the street from the state house, Gardner pointed to a picture of the late Minnesota Democratic senator, Eugene McCarthy. "That's when everyone started paying attention," he said of the 1968 photo, noting that President Lyndon B. Johnson thought he could win New Hampshire that year without spending much time in the state. McCarthy, a strong anti-Vietnam War candidate, won, and Johnson dropped out within days.

Ask Gardner to recall previous filing ceremonies, and he smiles. The secretary remembers the fringe candidate from Michigan who thanked him for making his state's process open to lesser-known candidates. He recalls his recent conversations with Barack Obama (D-Ill.). And he thinks of the time Democrat Gary Hart arrived in his office and dropped bags full of 1,000 one-dollar bills, after asking New Hampshire residents to donate cash towards his application fee.

As for the current presidential campaign, Gardner said: "It's certainly not decided."