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December 12, 2007 03:18 pm
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On the Issues: New Hampshire residents set their own agenda
"I've voted in every election since I was old enough to vote," said Tom Case, 73, a retired engineer from Windham. "I believe it's very important."
Editor's note: This is part of a series of stories examining the top issues of concern for 154 Southern New Hampshire voters.
By Jo-Anne MacKenzie
CNHI News Service
DERRY, N.H. — When New Hampshire votes, the nation listens.
Presidential campaigns have soared and plummeted as the result of votes cast in the Granite State's first-in-the-nation primary. Contenders spin through the state with increasing frequency as that early 2008 date draws near. They all have a pitch to make, a platform to sell, and ideas with which to test the political waters.
Media coverage of the backyard barbecues, the town meeting-style gatherings and even the well-organized debates often tends to focus on what the candidates want voters to hear -- rather than on the issues voters care about.
The Eagle-Tribune is engaging 154 Southern New Hampshire residents in a conversation about the hopes, concerns and issues they feel are most important.
These voters represent 16 Southern New Hampshire towns, most in Rockingham County, on the Southern New Hampshire border. Among them are stay-at-home mothers, engineers, laborers, business owners, students, bankers, teachers, physicians and retirees.
Their average age is 48. Two have seen their 90th birthdays and have watched more than a dozen presidents be elected. Nine still are teenagers, eager to cast their first presidential ballots.
The group is fairly evenly divided among political parties: 36 percent are registered Independents, 34 percent declare themselves Republicans, and 23 percent are Democrats. The rest are undeclared or unwilling to share that information.
Fifty-three percent of the voters are women, almost matching New Hampshire's 51 percent female population.
These voters have concerns -- lots of them -- and they're looking for solutions from the presidential wannabes crisscrossing their state.
Participants were asked to choose 10 issues of top concern to them from a list of 25 topics including minimum wage, foreign relations, food safety and public education. They also ranked those issues in order of importance.
The U.S. presence in Iraq was the No. 1 concern for 33 percent of the voters. Health care followed, with 14 percent choosing it as their biggest concern.
Health care made the top 10 list of 86 percent of participants, followed closely by Iraq, making the top 10 for 84 percent.
Social Security was close behind. A surprising 113 of the 154 voters ranked it among the top 10 issues they will consider when evaluating who should be the next president.
Age did not appear to matter: Social Security is the third most important issue for a 17-year-old student who will cast his first ballot next year, as well as for a 43-year-old banker and a 71-year-old retiree.
While many issues were wildly popular -- Iraq, immigration and health care -- the voters' reasons for choosing them varied. Some say the country's immigration laws are too weak and want to see borders tightened. Others believe the country was founded on an open-door policy and want to see that continue.
Many voters are concerned about the country's continued presence in Iraq and want a president who will get us out the fastest. Others want a leader to stay the course and see the mission through.
Our voters are active democratic citizens. Ninety percent have cast ballots in previous presidential elections.
They take their responsibility seriously.
"I've voted in every election since I was old enough to vote," said Tom Case, 73, a retired engineer. "I believe it's very important."
And many participants, both longtime voters and those who will cast their first ballots, are politically involved beyond the ballot box. Fifty-seven percent have attended a campaign event. Thirty-seven percent have donated to a presidential campaign. Twenty-five percent have volunteered for a campaign.
We didn't ask participants which candidate they support, though we will check back as the campaign season progresses.
Even so, with a woman, a black man and a practicing Mormon among the front-runners, we did ask whether religion, race or gender matters when choosing a president.
It does not, according to a whopping 83 percent.
Jo-Anne MacKenzie is Assistant New Hampshire Editor for The Eagle-Tribune.
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