Primary Day in N.H.

Today is Primary Day in N.H. and I am really excited to see how things turn out. N.H. holds the first primary in the nation, in fact it is written into state law that the primary will be held one week prior to the earliest stated primary date established by any other state. The Iowa caucuses were held last week, however the caucus system doesn't involve voters going into a booth and voting for a specific candidate, but is more of a town hall style meeting where supporters gather in groups to show support for a particular candidate. So N.H. is actually the first state in the nation to have general election style voting in their primary and therefore the results give more weight to what we might expect in the general election. N.H. is my home state and as a liberal, I was pleased to see it reach "blue state" status in the 2006 mid term elections. It is a state full of undeclared, or independent, voters and the kicker in N.H. is that they can choose to vote on either side of the primary, either for the Democrats or for the Republicans. This will show the nation just exactly where these middle of the spectrum voters are leaning which is hugely important as I believe more and more voters, especially young voters, don't like to be pigeon-holed into one party or the other, but instead research each candidate's stance on the issues and vote accordingly based on their priorities. I will admit that I'm a straight ticket Democrat, but as this base of independent voters grows, I think the candidates will do whatever they can to appeal to these mid-spectrum minds. It makes me wonder whether the voting base moving more towards the middle might clear the way for a more than 2 party system in the (probably distant) future. Change is the buzzword of choice among all candidates, perhaps responding to what they sense in voters is a desire for new ideas and a different type of politics that is less partisan and more unified. The system as it is now is so bogged down and inefficient that something needs to happen. Barack Obama is my candidate of choice and as he gains momentum after winning Iowa and having an Election Day eve lead of double digits in N.H., it seems that he has inspired the hope that we aren't doomed to politics as usual forevermore.