Trump-endorsed candidates face test in New Hampshire congressional primary

[September 08, 2020]  By Susan Cornwell

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - New Hampshire voters cast their ballots on Tuesday in U.S. Senate and House of Representatives primaries that will test President Donald Trump's influence in the northeastern state that he narrowly lost to Hillary Clinton in 2016.

The president has endorsed Republican contenders for both the Senate and House in New Hampshire, which has been a political battleground in recent years.

"The sting of losing narrowly to Hillary Clinton hasn't left (Trump), and he wants to show that he can win here," said Dean Spiliotes, political science professor at Southern New Hampshire University.

But even if Trump's favored New Hampshire Republicans win their primary races Tuesday, fresh polling suggests they face uphill battles in the November general election in a state where Democratic voters hold a slight advantage.

Rhode Island also votes on Tuesday in some of the last U.S. congressional party primaries this year. The contests will produce nominees for Nov. 3 elections that will determine the balance of power in Congress. Democrats hope to keep control of the House and end the Senate's 53-47 Republican majority.

New Hampshire's two-term Senator Jeanne Shaheen, 73, is expected to win the Democratic primary Tuesday. She also appears to be in a good position for re-election in November, well outpacing both prospective Republican candidates in a Granite State Poll released last week by the University of New Hampshire Survey Center.

Republican attorney Bryant "Corky" Messner, 63, who has been proudly publicizing his Trump endorsement, is leading the race against Donald Bolduc for the Republican Senate nomination, although many voters are still undecided, the Granite State Poll said.

Supporter wearing a face mask due to the ongoing coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak holds up a phone as U.S. President Donald Trump holds a campaign rally in Londonderry, New Hampshire, U.S., August 28, 2020. REUTERS/Carlos Barria

The two men are both conservatives with military experience. A New Hampshire native, Bolduc has portrayed Messner as a wealthy out-of-stater; Messner was raised in Pennsylvania and built a law firm in Colorado before moving to New Hampshire.

Trump's campaign says only two of 118 candidates the president has endorsed this year have lost in congressional primaries and special elections. However, Trump's endorsement alone does not make Messner a shoo-in in New Hampshire, said Andrew Smith, director of the Survey Center, which polls public opinion.

"There are a lot of Republicans here within the state who are anti-Trumpers, particularly in a primary, where you have more ideological voters," Smith said.

In New Hampshire's first congressional district, a similar scenario is playing out where a 31-year-old Trump-endorsed candidate, Matt Mowers, hopes to win a crowded Republican primary and then battle freshman Democratic Representative Chris Pappas in November.

Democrats have the edge in the district, non-partisan election analysts say.

(Reporting by Susan Cornwell; Editing by Richard Cowan and Aurora Ellis)

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