Celebrating the 100th anniversary of the New Hampshire primary

 Taking a break from the national politics and scandals of the day for it is time to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the New Hampshire primary.

  Over the years many people have complained about the influence a small state such as New Hampshire has in selecting the presidential candidates of both parties but most people probably do not know why New Hampshire enjoys the first in the nation status it currently does in the election process. In fact, to be clear, I did not realize why either, but it is because the New Hampshire primary was the first primary ever.

  Up until 1913 the party insiders chose who would be the delegates to the conventions but that changed in New Hampshire when the Bullock Act was passed–for the first time in this nation’s history the people would choose who would represent the parties at the conventions instead of the party bigwigs. This was the first primary in the nation.

  And then in 1952 a law was passed in New Hampshire which would allow the people to actually vote in the primary for the presidential candidate they preferred in the parties to represent them, creating the system which is currently in place all across the nation. For the first time in United States history the people had direct input in the presidential race. This had a direct impact immediately:

That year, Granite Staters chose Sen. Estes Kefauver over President Harry Truman in the Democratic presidential primary, prompting Truman not to seek a second term.

  To this day New Hampshire law requires the Secretary of State to ensure the New Hampshire primary is the first in the nation and now you might have a little insight into why New Hampshire holds this issue in such high regard.

  If you are interested you can read more about the New Hampshire primary and the celebration of its 100th anniversary here.