| National
Grange Hosts Legislative Fly-in In New Hampshire
During Presidential Primary
 | | New
Hampshire Fly-In participants meet with Wayne MacDonald (top row, 6th from left),
Vice Chairman of the Republican Party of New Hampshire, and Kathleen Sullivan
(top row, 5th from left), Chairwoman of the New Hampshire Democratic Party, to
learn about the role of political party organizations in the primary process. |
Washington,
January 23, 2004 - The National Grange Legislative Department hosted its Legislative
Fly-In II on January 16 -18, 2004. This fly-in was a unique experience because
it was the first time the program was held during the New Hampshire Presidential
Primary.
More than 35 participants attended the three-day, non-partisan event to learn
about the role of citizenship and civic involvement. The participants attended
workshops, listened to insightful lectures given by several New Hampshire political
leaders and received the opportunity to volunteer in the campaign office of their
presidential candidate of choice. "We
are proud that we are able to give our members a unique, behind-the-scenes adventure
into presidential politics," National Grange Master William A. Steel said. "This
is a new venture for the legislative department of the National Grange, and we
will continue to provide our members with enough knowledge as possible about political
processes so that knowledge can better serve rural America." New Hampshire State
Senator Thomas Eaton was the first speaker to address the participants. He explained
the role of the state legislature in the presidential primary process. "New Hampshire
has a state law that requires our primary to be held seven days before any other
state's primary.ensuring that New Hampshire remains first," Senator Eaton said.
Although New Hampshire is proud of being the first state that holds a presidential
primary, it became the first by accident. Before
1915, its primary was held in the spring as it is in other states. But towns in
New Hampshire had a tradition of holding "town hall meetings" in the winter, in
early March. In 1915, the state decided it was too expensive to turn on the lights
twice at town halls - once for the meeting and a second time for the primary election.
So it decided to have the 1916 town hall meetings and the primary election on
the same day in early March. And starting with the election of 1920, New Hampshire's
primary was the first in the nation. Other
states have tried to schedule a primary before New Hampshire's, but New Hampshire
responds by changing its primary to an earlier date. This year, Democrats in the
District of Columbia tried to be first by scheduling a primary for January 13,
2004, but the Democratic Party responded by making the primary "non-binding."
The New Hampshire Presidential Primary is scheduled for January 27, 2004. Following
Senator Eaton, the Honorable William M. Gardner, New Hampshire Secretary of State,
discussed the role of state and local elections officials in their presidential
primary process. Other speakers on January 16th included: Wayne MacDonald, Vice
Chairmen of the Republican Party of New Hampshire, and Kathleen Sullivan, Chairwomen
of the New Hampshire Democratic Party. They each talked about the role of their
political parties in the presidential primary process. New Hampshire Representative
Henry Parkhurst talked about his experience as a first-time candidate for the
New Hampshire House of Representatives. On
January 17th, the lectures continued, but the workshops began. In the workshops,
the participants were able to learn about the role of the media in presidential
primaries and campaign activism. The Honorable Dr. Charles Weed, Keene State College
Professor of Political Science and Member of the New Hampshire House of Representatives,
and Joe McQuaid, Publisher of the Manchester Union Leader, were the day's speakers.
On
January 18th, the participants volunteered in the campaign offices of Former Vermont
Governor Howard Dean, Senator John Edwards and Representative Dennis Kucinich.
While volunteering, the participants worked on a variety of projects including
handing out flyers, making phone calls, visiting New Hampshire residents to distribute
yard signs and assisting with general office duties. |
