1992 United States presidential election in New Hampshire

Main article: 1992 United States presidential election

1992 United States presidential election in New Hampshire

November 3, 1992

Nominee Bill Clinton George H. W. Bush Ross Perot Party Democratic Republican Independent Home state Arkansas Texas Texas Running mate Al Gore Dan Quayle James Stockdale Electoral vote 4 0 0 Popular vote 209,040 202,484 121,337 Percentage 38.91% 37.69% 22.59%

Clinton   30-40%   40-50%   50-60%   60-70%   90-100% Bush   30-40%   40-50%   50-60%   60-70% Perot   30-40%   40-50%   50-60%   70-80%

President before election George H. W. Bush Republican Elected President Bill Clinton Democratic

The 1992 United States presidential election in New Hampshire took place on November 3, 1992, as part of the 1992 United States presidential election. Voters chose four representatives, or electors to the Electoral College, who voted for president and vice president.

New Hampshire was won by Governor Bill Clinton (D-Arkansas) with 38.91% of the popular vote over incumbent President George H. W. Bush (R-Texas) with 37.69%. Businessman Ross Perot (I-Texas) finished in third, with 22.59% of the popular vote. Clinton ultimately won the national vote, defeating incumbent President Bush. This was the best result the New England-born Bush would record in that region for the 1992 election. Clinton was the first Democrat to carry Cheshire, Grafton, Merrimack, and Sullivan Counties since 1964; and Strafford County since 1968. He was the first Democrat to win any county in the state since 1976.

Clinton's win marked the beginning of a dramatic shift in New Hampshire politics toward the Democratic Party. The state had been regarded as a Republican bastion, having previously voted Republican in every presidential election since 1944 except for Lyndon B. Johnson's 1964 landslide. In 1988 Bush carried the state by over 26 points, making it his second-best state in that election. Nevertheless, like the rest of New England, New Hampshire began trending hard toward the Democratic Party in the 1990s, and starting in 1992 the state has voted Democratic in every presidential election except 2000 when Bush's son eked out a narrow plurality over Clinton's vice president, Al Gore. This marked the first presidential election since 1912 in which a non-incumbent Democrat carried New Hampshire. This is the most recent election in which Hillsborough County backed the candidate who lost the presidency nationwide.

Primaries

Democratic primary

1992 New Hampshire Democratic presidential primary

February 18, 1992 (1992-02-18)

Candidate Paul Tsongas Bill Clinton Bob Kerrey Home state Massachusetts Arkansas Nebraska Delegate count 9 9 0 Popular vote 55,666 41,542 18,584 Percentage 33.21% 24.78% 11.09%   Candidate Tom Harkin Jerry Brown Home state Iowa California Delegate count 0 0 Popular vote 17,063 13,660 Percentage 10.18% 8.15%

The 1992 New Hampshire Democratic primary was won by Paul Tsongas, but is known for the insurgent campaign of Bill Clinton, who managed a surprising second-place finish. It was held February 18, 1992.

The Iowa caucus, the first contest of the 1992 Democratic primaries, was not contested. Due to the presence of Iowa Senator Tom Harkin in the race, the other candidates did not campaign in Iowa, instead conceding the contest to Harkin, and making the New Hampshire primary even more important.

On January 19, The Boston Globe published a poll showing Clinton ahead of the field with 29%, Paul Tsongas with 17%, and Bob Kerrey 16%. Following this poll, reports of an extramarital affair between Clinton and Gennifer Flowers surfaced. As Clinton fell far behind former Massachusetts Senator Paul Tsongas in the New Hampshire polls, Clinton and his wife Hillary went on 60 Minutes following the Super Bowl to deny the charges. The Clinton campaign also weathered attacks concerning alleged draft dodging during the Vietnam War and the case of Ricky Ray Rector.

Tsongas won the New Hampshire primary with Clinton finishing within single digits of Tsongas, despite trailing badly in the polls. Since many expected Tsongas to win anyway, as New Hampshire borders his home state of Massachusetts, the media viewed the results as a victory for Clinton. On election night, Clinton labeled himself "The Comeback Kid", and he left New Hampshire with an increase in momentum in the remaining primaries, which helped him win the nomination. Clinton became the first president elected despite not winning the New Hampshire primary. Since then, every non-incumbent candidate who has gone on to win the presidency has lost the New Hampshire primary, except Donald Trump in 2016.

Results

• Paul Tsongas: 55,666 (33.21%)
• Bill Clinton: 41,542 (24.78%)
• Bob Kerrey: 18,584 (11.09%)
• Tom Harkin: 17,063 (10.18%)
• Jerry Brown: 13,660 (8.15%)
• Mario Cuomo: 6,577 (3.92%)
• Tom Laughlin: 3,251 (1.94%)
• Ralph Nader: 3,054 (1.82%)
• Charles Woods: 2,862 (1.71%)
• George Herbert Walker Bush: 1,433 (0.86%)
• Pat Buchanan: 1,248 (0.74%)
• Lenora Fulani: 402 (0.24%)
• Larry Agran: 331 (0.20%)
• Patrick J. Mahoney, Jr.: 303 (0.18%)
• Eugene McCarthy: 211 (0.13%)
• John Donald Rigazio: 186 (0.11%)
• Curly Thornton: 125 (0.08%)
• Lyndon LaRouche: 115 (0.07%)
• Douglas Wilder: 103 (0.06%)
• Caroline Killeen: 94 (0.06%)
• John Patrick Cahill: 83 (0.05%)
• Paul C. Fisher: 82 (0.05%)
• Andre Marrou: 67 (0.04%)
• Frank Bona: 65 (0.04%)
• Karl J. Hegger: 61 (0.04%)

Source: Our Campaigns

Results

1992 United States presidential election in New Hampshire
Party		Candidate	Votes	Percentage	Electoral votes
	Democratic	Bill Clinton	209,040	38.91%	4
	Republican	George H. W. Bush (incumbent)	202,484	37.69%	0
	Independent	Ross Perot	121,337	22.59%	0
	Libertarian	Andre Marrou	3,548	0.66%	0
	New Alliance	Lenora Fulani	512	0.10%	0
	Natural Law	Dr. John Hagelin	294	0.05%	0
Totals			537,215	100.0%	4

Results by county

County	Bill Clinton Democratic		George H.W. Bush Republican		H. Ross Perot Independent		Andre Marrou Libertarian		Various candidates Other parties		Margin		Total votes cast
	#	%	#	%	#	%	#	%	#	%	#	%
Belknap	8,405	33.50%	10,578	42.16%	5,970	23.79%	110	0.44%	27	0.11%	-2,173	-8.66%	25,090
Carroll	7,258	33.44%	8,715	40.16%	5,546	25.55%	134	0.62%	50	0.23%	-1,457	-6.71%	21,703
Cheshire	15,037	46.33%	11,037	34.00%	6,195	19.09%	156	0.48%	32	0.10%	4,000	12.32%	32,457
Coös	6,559	41.50%	5,271	33.35%	3,868	24.47%	75	0.47%	31	0.20%	1,288	8.15%	15,804
Grafton	15,389	42.34%	13,450	37.01%	7,296	20.08%	151	0.42%	57	0.16%	1,939	5.34%	36,343
Hillsborough	58,470	37.04%	61,620	39.04%	36,067	22.85%	1,329	0.84%	354	0.22%	-3,150	-2.00%	157,840
Merrimack	24,437	41.54%	22,114	37.59%	11,860	20.16%	365	0.62%	58	0.10%	2,323	3.95%	58,834
Rockingham	44,317	35.80%	47,353	38.25%	31,192	25.19%	802	0.65%	142	0.11%	-3,036	-2.45%	123,806
Strafford	21,247	44.69%	16,028	33.72%	9,920	20.87%	306	0.64%	38	0.08%	5,219	10.98%	47,539
Sullivan	7,921	44.50%	6,318	35.50%	3,423	19.23%	120	0.67%	17	0.10%	1,603	9.01%	17,799
Totals	209,040	38.91%	202,484	37.69%	121,337	22.59%	3,548	0.66%	806	0.15%	6,556	1.22%	537,215

Counties that flipped from Republican to Democratic

• Cheshire
• Coös
• Grafton
• Merrimack
• Strafford
• Sullivan

See also

• Presidency of Bill Clinton
• United States presidential elections in New Hampshire