Huntsman plans NH town hall during Iowa debate

[December 03, 2011]  WASHINGTON (AP) -- Former Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman is planning to have a town hall meeting in New Hampshire next weekend while his rivals participate in a debate in Iowa that ABC is to televise nationally.

Huntsman on Friday said he will meet with voters on Dec. 10 in New Hampshire, a state central to his political strategy. Huntsman has written-off Iowa and has spent neither time nor money there.

As a result, he was unlikely meet the qualifying threshold in Iowa of 5 percent in a poll of state caucusgoers or in a national poll.

Huntsman also has accepted an invitation to do a one-on-one debate with former House Speaker Newt Gingrich in New Hampshire. The two will meet in Windham for a Lincoln-Douglas-style debate with tea party activists on Dec. 12.

[Associated Press]

Copyright 2011 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.