US: The cold in New Hampshire is so intense that it numbs the skin, cuts to the bone through winter clothing and freezes solid a cup of coffee in minutes.Yet all four leading contenders for tomorrow's Democratic primary are drawing huge crowds to last-minute rallies, writes Conor O'Clery in Concord, New Hampshire
People bundle up and trudge along icy pavements and through snow-covered car-parks to crush into sweaty meetings. The reason for the intense interest becomes clear when talking to voters at rallies for Senator John Kerry of Massachusetts, former Vermont governor Howard Dean, Senator John Edwards of North Carolina and retired general Wesley Clark from Arkansas held across New Hampshire over the weekend.
They want to get rid of the Bush administration, for reasons varying from health care costs and failing education standards to lost jobs and the war in Iraq.
But there is an intense, visceral dislike of Mr Bush also at work, and of members of his administration, especially Attorney-General John Ashcroft, whose name draws loud boos. Voters want to scrutinise the Democratic candidates to judge not just their policies but their prospects of beating Mr Bush.
At Mr Kerry's rallies, aides have been handing out copies of a Newsweek survey showing that if the election were held today the Massachusetts senator would beat Mr Bush by 49 to 46 per cent. Mr Bush, whose approval rating has fallen from 54 to 50 per cent in the last week, would still have the edge over any other candidate.
Mr Kerry, enjoying a big bounce from his Iowa victory, has taken a commanding lead in the poll, which puts him ahead by 30 per cent over Mr Edwards and Gen Clark at 13 per cent, Mr Dean at 12 per cent, and Senator Joe Lieberman struggling in single digits. A Boston Globe poll puts Mr Kerry ahead by 38-15 per cent over Mr Dean. Though damaged by his much-ridiculed "I have a scream" speech in Iowa last week, Mr Dean had enough passionate supporters to fill a small ballroom and overflow lobby at a seaside hotel in New Castle on Saturday afternoon, with placard-bearing youngsters standing outside in the bitter cold.
Mr Dean gave an impressive critique of the Bush administration and promised to deliver the country from rich and powerful interests.
When praised by a speaker, he said: "I'm so excited I could scream - but I won't," though everybody in the room laughed and gave a mock scream. At a Kerry rally outside Concord, where a blast of U2's Beautiful Day greeted voters coming in from the minus 16 degrees cold, the senator fired off promises about jobs, health care, the environment, trade and foreign policy in a fluent, confident performance.
Yesterday, Senator Edward Kennedy, never a close friend, campaigned with him as rumours circulated that he has been promised health care reform if Mr Kerry gets to the White House.
In the crowd maths teacher Ms Jane Whelaw said that she gone to hear Mr Dean, who "said all the right words but not from his heart". Social worker Ms Pam Sinotte had also opted for Mr Kerry over Mr Dean though "any one would be a better president than Bush".
As front-runner Mr Kerry is attracting closer scrutiny of his record, in particular his votes for the Patriot Act, the President's No Child Left Behind education bill and the pro-war Congressional resolution, all of which he now criticises.
In a basketball court in Rochester the popular, boyish Senator Edwards rallied mostly working-class supporters with populist, upbeat slogans, telling them in his southern drawl, "Ah know yew are all strugglin' to get bah". Some compare him to Mr Clinton who ran a similar race in 1992, but without such formidable opposition.
Gen Clark, his voice giving out and his polls slipping, still drew 1,000 people to a college in Derry, where he emphasised his leadership qualities and pitched for the support of the veterans who have been backing Mr Kerry. Both he and Senator Kerry were wounded in Vietnam.
With one in six Democrats in New Hampshire undecided, there could still be a surprise result, and all the leading candidates are planning to campaign right up to when the polls close tomorrow evening.