Supporters of New Hampshire’s First-in-the-Nation (FITN) primary plan to greet U.S. Sen. Ruben Gallego (D-Ariz.) with questions about his support—or lack thereof—for the state’s place at the front of the presidential primary line.
It’s a top issue for Granite State political operatives and potentially a tough one for Gallego, who publicly called on Democrats to dump New Hampshire for South Carolina and Nevada in 2021.
Gallego, who’s rumored to be considering a 2028 White House run, is scheduled to speak Friday morning at a Politics and Eggs breakfast, hosted by the New England Council at the New Hampshire Institute of Politics. Later in the day, he’s joining U.S. Rep. Maggie Goodlander (D-NH02) for a town hall in Nashua and Rep. Chris Pappas (D-NH01) for a fundraiser.
The first-term senator’s visit is the latest sign that the fortunes of the FITN primary are rising among Democrats, just two years after President Joe Biden and the DNC bumped it from the 2024 calendar. He joins Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) and Gov. J.B. Pritzker (D-Ill.), who’ve also made New Hampshire stops this year. While none of those names are in the top tier of the 2028 potential candidate list, their decision to come indicates they believe the Granite State is going to play a key role in the race.
That theory got another boost Thursday when Axios reported that New Hampshire is among three states on the short list to be “the new Iowa” for 2028 — the first contest out of the gate. The other two states are Michigan and Nevada.
Iowa’s status took a severe beating after it mishandled the 2020 caucuses, and progressive Democrats have been slamming New Hampshire for years as “too White” for a party that embraces identity politics. One of those progressive critics has been Gallego.
“Love my friends in Iowa and New Hampshire, but time to move on. South Carolina and Nevada should start the primaries,” Gallego posted on social media in 2021.
He was more blunt in 2020: “F*** caucuses. Iowa failed. Time to move on.”
During a stop at the Iowa State Fair earlier this month, Gallego said his previous comments were “dumb,” but he declined to express an opinion about what the 2028 calendar should look like.
“What I said was, you know, dumb of me,” Gallego said. “Whatever happens in the future, it’s going to be left up to the DNC.”
The New Hampshire GOP says Gallego and his fellow Democrats can’t be trusted on the FITN issue.
“New Hampshire Democrats rolled over as Joe Biden and far-left liberals like Ruben Gallego trashed our historic First-in-the-Nation primary. Now, they’re rolling out the red carpet for Gallego, who is trying to parlay his anti-New Hampshire history into a laughable run for president,” said state party chair Jim MacEachern.
“I have a better chance of starting at quarterback for the New England Patriots than Ruben Gallego’s chances of becoming president. It’s embarrassing that Chris Pappas and Maggie Goodlander are giving this anti-New Hampshire politician a platform in our great state.”
But former state GOP chair Chris Ager is taking a different approach. He’s part of a new nonpartisan effort to promote the FITN primary that launched Thursday, the First-in-the-Nation (FITN) Presidential Primary Committee, a 501(c)(4) organization to “champion the preservation of New Hampshire’s historic role in presidential politics,” according to a press release.
Ager told NHJournal he plans to attend the Politics and Eggs event and is hoping to hear Gallego endorse New Hampshire’s place at the top of the calendar.
“In the past, Sen. Gallego has disparaged the FITN process. We’re hopeful that this visit is a sign he’s beginning to understand New Hampshire’s importance and that he’ll support our first-in-the-nation status after his visit tomorrow,” said fellow committee member Kate Day.
One person who has no plans to come to New Hampshire: Former Vice President Kamala Harris. On Thursday she released the schedule for her book tour to promote “107 Days,” her account of her failed presidential bid. The 15-city tour includes New York, San Francisco and even foreign cities like Toronto and London.
But no stops in New Hampshire.
