Candidates pamper New Hampshire's demanding voters

US: A dimly-lit diner with stodgy food and lackadaisical service, the Merrimack on Manchester's Elm Street, has fed more presidents…

US:A dimly-lit diner with stodgy food and lackadaisical service, the Merrimack on Manchester's Elm Street, has fed more presidents than almost any restaurant in America.

Between now and January, presidential candidates will plough through one of the Miramack's grease-packed breakfasts as they woo the most pampered electorate in the country - the voters of New Hampshire.

The New Hampshire party primaries, the first in every presidential election, have proved pivotal in past contests, marking Bill Clinton as the "Comeback Kid" in 1992 (even though he didn't actually win the primary) and creating the momentum behind John Kerry that allowed him to win the Democratic nomination in 2004.

All 18 declared candidates were here this week for TV debates but almost every day there is a candidate somewhere in the state addressing a meeting or visiting voters at home.

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Any New Hampshire voter who wants to meet a presidential hopeful will do so at least once over the next seven months but campaign staff are full of stories about how demanding voters in the state can be - from the woman who complained that she didn't really know a candidate because she'd only met him three times, to the man who ruled out voting for the only candidate who didn't send him a birthday card.

The entrance to St Anselm's College, a Benedictine liberal arts college in Manchester, was thronged with anti-war demonstrators before the Democratic debate on Sunday evening. The Iraq war was the dominant issue inside too. Barack Obama reminded everyone that he was against the war from the start and John Edwards, once a loud supporter, sought to recast himself as the most radically anti-war candidate.

For front runner Hillary Clinton, who has never disowned her vote to authorise the war but now wants US troops out, the issue remains an uncomfortable one and she had to admit on Sunday that she had not read a classified intelligence report on Iraq before voting.

Edwards and Obama sniped at one another, while Clinton sought to remain above the fray, responding to attacks on herself by turning her fire on Bush.

Obama, who attracts crowds of thousands at rallies, is expected to raise more money in the second three months of this year than Clinton but he continues to trail her in polls nationally and in New Hampshire.

A poll of likely voters in the New Hampshire Democratic primary, taken the day after the debate, showed Clinton's support jumping six points to 38 per cent, while Obama's fell nine points to 16 per cent. Edwards dropped three points to 13 per cent.

One of the smallest states in the US - population 1.3 million - New Hampshire is far from representative of the country. Ninety five per cent white and boasting the motto "Live Free or Die", it is both more conservative and more libertarian than most states, with no personal income tax or sales tax.

Last week, it became the fourth US state to introduce civil unions for gays and lesbians and the state senate this week voted down a Bill requiring motorists to wear a seat belt.

New Hampshire's early primary brings in a lot of money, at least $100 million in extra hotel bookings, car rentals and restaurant meals.

That's one reason the state is determined to remain the first to hold its primary, even if that means bringing the vote forward to late 2007.

Last week, Florida decided to move its primary to January 29th, a week before 24 states - including New York and California - hold votes that are likely to determine the outcome in both parties. New Hampshire is due to vote on January 22nd, but with Iowa and Nevada planning caucuses a week earlier, the primary could yet be held before Christmas.

The decision by so many big states to hold primaries in early February could serve to make the New Hampshire primary more influential than ever because candidates who fail to do well will have less chance to recover later.

Othe Republican side, of the 10 candidates who crowded on stage for Tuesday's debate, former New York mayor Rudy Giuliani, Arizona senator John McCain and former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney were the most serious contenders.

The Republicans drew a smaller crowd and less media interest than the Democrats and most of the party faithful waving banners outside appeared to be backing Ron Paul, a libertarian congressman who opposes the Iraq war and whose candidacy is not taken seriously in Washington.

As has become customary in Republican debates, God played a leading role, with Mike Huckabee, a former governor of Arkansas and a Baptist minister, delivering a lengthy defence of creationism and Romney explaining that being a Mormon doesn't make him all that unusual.

"I believe in God, believe in the Bible, believe Jesus Christ is my saviour. I believe that God created man in his image. I believe that the freedoms of man derive from inalienable rights that were given to us by God," he said.

In the spin room later, Romney's son Tagg (he and his brothers Matt, John, Ben and Craig are routinely compared to the Osmonds) told me that, the more people got to know about his father, the less they cared about his being a Mormon. When I asked if it would be useful for Americans to learn more about Mormonism, Tagg stared at me for a moment and said "No, I don't think so."

A poll of likely voters in the local Republican primary gave Romney a commanding lead with 28 per cent, compared to Giuliani's 18 per cent and McCain's 17 per cent.