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Title Page
Dedication
A Word from the Secretary of State
Author's Objective
From the Beginning to 1831
Primary: first... original ...
premier ... #1
From 1831 to 1913
1952 - A New Beginning
Recognized Political Parties
Changes During the Seventies
The Nineties
FIRST IN THE NATION
What is "Civic Responsibility"
What Makes NH Primary So Valuable...?
Media
Quiz
Activities
Glossary
Bibliography
Index
www.nhprimary.nhsl.lib.nh.us
questions@nhprimary.nhsl.lib.nh.us
*New Hampshire Presidential Primary Trading Cards
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Recognized Political Parties
Presidential primary ballots are prepared by the Secretary of State for designated political parties. All candidates listed on the ballots must be members of those parties.
For a "political organization" to qualify as a recognized political party, and to take part in a presidential primary, it must first have received at least 4% of the total number of votes cast for the Office of Governor or United States Senator in the preceding state general election.
In the presidential primaries from 1952 through 1988 only the Republican and Democratic parties qualified to be on the ballot. The Libertarian Party also became eligible in 1992 and 1996 because they were able to acquire the necessary percentage of the vote.
The President is the leader of his political party. He stands for what his party believes. That is why everyone should read and study about a political party before joining it to understand where the party stands on important issues, such as our national defense, education, and foreign policy. Can you think of other important matters like these that must be guarded by all the people?
The Republicans ...
The Republican Party first began to stir in 1801. The Party re- grouped in 1828 but did not truly reorganize as we know it until October 12, 1853 when our own U.S. Congressman Amos Tuck of Exeter, New Hampshire, called a secret meeting of the leaders of four existing parties. They met at Major Blake's Hotel in Exeter.
Fourteen politically prominent men, including U.S. Senator John P. Hale,
were identified as having attended this historic meeting. When they adjourned, all had agreed to join together as Republicans. They had to keep
their plans secret for a while so that they could begin organizing and directing their members into the new coalition.
In 1856 John C. Fremont was nominated as the first presidential candidate of the modern Republican Party, but he lost in the general election to the Democrat, James Buchanan.
Four years later Abraham Lincoln was elected the first Republican president. He became the Republicans' official flag-bearer. That is why it is called the Party of Lincoln. His son, Robert, attended Phillips-Exeter Academy where he was visited by his father before he became President.
The Republican Party is also nicknamed the GOP (Grand Old Party), so- called because of a new prosperity and national sense of well-being that emerged at the beginning of President William McKinley's term in 1896. When our country's economy is strong and there is low unemployment, it benefits both the sitting President and his political party.
The elephant is the Republican Party's symbol,
first used in 1860. It was Thomas Nast's cartoons, however, that firmly established the elephant and the donkey as the symbols of the Republican and Democratic Parties.
Since the mid-1800s when New Hampshire's Franklin Pierce, a Democrat, was President, the state generally elected Republicans as its leaders
at all levels of government.
After the introduction of the presidential primary, voter registration began slowly to even out, into the late nineties, to approximately one-third Republican, one-third Democrat, one-third Independent. This near-even distribution gives the presidential candidates a fair test of their platforms.
Within each party there is a good spread of liberals, moderates, and conservatives. The Libertarian party has strengthened, too. This clearly proves that our citizens offer a variety of views representative of all American citizens.
In turn, the Republican and Democratic candidates try to reach all the voters, hoping to persuade the Independents and some from the opposing party.
Candidates know that grassroots campaigning is vital to their success in New Hampshire. "Grassroots" is the name given to the people at the local level
-- the voters, the students, and all those who will influence how the votes will tally on election day. They are the very foundation of our democracy.
The grassroots include those citizens who volunteer on behalf of the candidates, who distribute the campaign fliers or brochures in all the neighbor- hoods, who bring neighbors and friends together in their homes to meet the person they prefer should become their leader. Without grassroots approval, a candidate gets nowhere.
The candidates shake hands with everyone they meet. They talk and they listen to us. We tell them how we feel, what we consider important, such as good schools, protecting the environment, taxation, and problems with bridges or roads. It is vital that these candidates know how the citizens feel about their country and how it is being governed.
The candidates help people learn about what they stand for through personal contact, brochures, posters, and media availability. Public debates are sponsored in most communities.
New Hampshire offers a level playing field to anyone who wishes to be President of the United States. Since we are always in an election mode, with governors, legislators, and many others elected every two years, we've had plenty of experience with elections, more than any other state.
Perhaps one day
you might even run for office!
THE JEFFERSON MEMORIAL IN WASHINGTON, DC
The Jefferson Memorial, built in honor of the third President of the United
States, Thomas Jefferson, is one of the jewels of Washington, D.C.
The Democratic Party was organized in 1792 by
Thomas Jefferson as a "congressional caucus" to fight
for the Bill of Rights and against the Populist Party.
In 1798 it became "the party of the common man" and was officially called the Democratic-Republicans. Jefferson was elected as a Democratic- Republican President.
In 1828 Andrew Jackson was elected President. He created the national convention process, the party platform, and reunified the Party on the issue of states' rights. In 1840, the organization was officially re-named the Democratic Party. The donkey is its symbol.
Between those elections occurred many major changes in our nation's political parties. The sizable group of Democratic- Republicans had split into many different factions, each of which had its own name. There was even a "Know-Nothing" party. Can you imagine being part of a group called "know-nothing?"
The major terminal blow toward the separation between Republicans and Democrats was the issue of slavery. Once again New Hampshire led the way in what turned out to be a major battle, as other states joined the debate.
U.S. Senator John P. Hale of New Hampshire was the first to speak out publicly in Congress against slavery. New Hampshire's Franklin Pierce, a Democrat, was elected President of the United States in 1852. He was tolerant of slavery.
It took a Civil War to settle this serious issue, a sad but monumental chapter in American history.
The right to vote
Few people were allowed to vote in the early years of the United States. Poor people, blacks, women, and Indians couldn't vote.
Each group battled to gain the legal right to vote. Black males won voting rights in 1870 with the passage of the Fifteenth Amendment to the Constitution. Women won voting rights in 1920, when the Nineteenth Amendment was passed. The Indians gained the right to vote in every state in 1948.
Until recently, Americans had to be twenty-one years old to vote in most states. In 1971 the Twenty-sixth Amendment was passed. It lowered the voting age to eighteen.
GOTV:
When you think of people in non-democratic countries who are not allowed to vote at all, but who are and have been willing to die for that right, it is unbelievable that so many Americans fail to exercise their voting privileges.
We must all take action in the closing weeks before an election, and encourage our parents and neighbors
to GET OUT THE VOTE on Election Day.
The Libertarian Party, the Reform Party, United We Stand, and the Natural Law Party have remained viable organizations. Each party represents a particular philosophy, a way of thinking to which many people subscribe. Some folks believe we should still have a "know-nothing" party. It would be much larger than anyone can imagine!
In this country, people join together for many different causes, and can freely express themselves on or about those causes. There exists much political diversity, and freedom of speech remains a cherished privilege.
Will you ever join a political party?
If so, you might remember this:
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Please Know: You don't have to
agree with every single thing a
political party stands for, any
more than everyone has to like broccoli
or vanilla milkshakes.
But if you believe in most of a
group's purpose or objective,
then you may want to become a part
of it.
Remember, there's more strength in numbers.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
WORDS OF WISDOM
Many former presidents and other national figures have commented on the value of the New Hampshire primary. Noted political author, commentator, and analyst David Broder, who covered numerous presidential campaigns, said it well:
"I am firmly of the belief that the term 'front runner' should never be applied to anyone until the voters in New Hampshire have performed their God-given right to sort out and shrink the presidential nomination field."
He added: "Every four years, someone will ask why a nation this large, this diverse, lets a couple of hundred thousand voters in an out-of-the-way corner of this country decide who should be president. The answer is obvious. Nobody does it better."
From the Boston Globe: "Toppling two presidents (Truman and Johnson). Kneecapping front-runners like Taft, Muskie and Mondale. Introducing future presidents like Eisenhower, Carter and Clinton. New Hampshire voters know how to size them up and lay them out. Rarely has the rest of the nation disagreed."
Brian Lamb, president of C-Span, said our primary is "always going to be important ... because you're smart enough to figure out for yourselves if a candidate is pulling your chain."
Democratic National Chairman Don Fowler expressed strong support:
"It's retail politics," he said. "It gives average people an opportunity to meet and judge the candidates on a personal basis. In a sense the people of New Hampshire are surrogates for the rest of the country."
Word Watch: When the word democratic begins with a small "d" we are referring to democracy. When it begins with a capital "D" we're usually talking about the Democratic Party. Some linguists prefer the adjective without the "ic" at the end, but common usage includes the suffix.
Why use quotations, slogans, old sayings ?
Using quotes, proverbs, or slogans provides added substance, corroboration, and reinforcement to a writer's words. We often make up our own phrases or catchy lines, something witty, to make speeches or writings more interesting. Politicians use jokes to "warm up" their audience, to help them relax.
Politicians and other public speakers often use proverbs
to help make a point? What is a proverb?
A familiar statement expressing an observation
or principle generally accepted as wise or true;
a brief, popular epigram or maxim. Other synonyms
for proverb: adage, aphorism, byword, saw, saying.
Some well-known proverbs:
"The early bird catches the worm."
"Curiosity is the wick in the candle of learning."
"Knowledge is power."
THE POET
Poetry makes very powerful statements.
Refugee in America
There are words like Freedom
Sweet and wonderful to say.
On my heart-strings freedom sings
All day everyday.
There are words like Liberty
That almost make me cry.
If you had known what I knew
You would know why.
--By Langston Hughes, who began publishing
poetry in 1921, when he was only nineteen years old.
ACTIVITIES
How would you use an old saying
to make a point?
Do you know any old sayings or quotations?
It's a great game to play with your friends, or at the dinner table with your family.
The senior citizens you know can tell you some really old sayings that are hardly used any more, like "A stitch in time saves nine." What does that mean?
How about "You don't look a gift horse in the mouth."
WHAT ABOUT SLOGANS? See below ...
What is a slogan?
Most good political campaigns have a slogan. Perhaps you can make some up for your class, or for your sports team.
One fourth grader named Greg used "Greg's A Good Egg" for his slogan
when he ran for president of his class.
These are political slogans. Can anyone trace them back to their
sources?
"Where's the beef?"
"Read my lips ... No new taxes"
"Tippecanoe & Tyler too"
"It's the economy, stupid."
"Remember the Maine"
Are the following quotations helpful?
What do they mean to you?
"Stand with anybody that stands right; stand with him while he is right and part with him when he goes wrong." - Abraham Lincoln, speech in Peoria, Illinois, Oct. 17, 1854
"You can fool some of the people all of the time, and all of the people some of the time, but you cannot fool all of the people all of the time." -
Abraham Lincoln, speech in Clinton, Illinois, Sept. 2, 1859
"The first requisite of a good citizen in this republic of ours is that he should be able and willing to pull his weight." - Theodore Roosevelt
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