(UnitedHeadlines.com) – Nikki Haley claimed the first votes in the Jan. 23 New Hampshire primary, with all six registered voters in Dixville Notch casting their ballots for her at midnight.
Usually, voting takes place at the Balsams Resort, but because it is undergoing renovations, voting took place in the living room of Tillotson House, where the six voters, along with the media, were greeted by Maxine, an 11-month-old golden retriever. Two independent voters and four registered Republican voters participated in the midnight vote.
Principal owner and developer of the Balsams Resort Les Otten called the tradition “special.” Otten stated that 100 percent voter participation should “happen in every community in the United States.” He added that none of the six voters can complain about the election results “because we’ve participated.”
In a statement, Haley reacted to the news, calling it “A great start to a great day in New Hampshire.”
Since 1960, Dixville Notch has been the first place in the country to vote in the primary elections. Results from the tiny town are announced just after midnight. For some elections, other small towns in New Hampshire also begin voting at midnight, such as Hart’s Location and Millsfield, where the midnight voting tradition started. However, they do not consistently participate, and this year, Dixville Notch was alone in voting at midnight.
Town Moderator Tom Tillotson said that specifically so community members could vote without being forced to travel almost an hour away to participate in elections that his father, Neil Tillotson, the former owner of the Balsams Resort, worked to get Dixville Notch incorporated.
Since the results are such a small sample, they are not usually indicative of the election results for the state, which proved true this year. Despite Haley’s clean sweep in Dixville Notch, former President Donald Trump went on to win the state. He received at least 54 percent of the vote, with Haley receiving 44 percent.
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