Decision Desk HQ and Scripps News have projected that President Joe Biden will win New Hampshire's Democratic primary contest.
Biden was not present on the state's primary ballot due to recent changes by the Democratic National Committee on which states hold their Democratic primaries first.
But thanks to a robust write-in effort by supporters in New Hampshire, President Biden is expected to still carry the state in the Democratic race.
"It is now clear that Donald Trump will be the Republican nominee," President Biden said in a statement after Tuesday's results were published. "And my message to the country is the stakes could not be higher. Our Democracy. Our personal freedoms — from the right to choose to the right to vote. Our economy — which has seen the strongest recovery in the world since COVID. All are at stake."
"I want to thank all those who wrote my name in this evening in New Hampshire. It was a historic demonstration of commitment to our democratic process. And I want to say to all those Independents and Republicans who share our commitment to core values of our nation — our Democracy, our personal freedoms, an economy that gives everyone a fair shot — to join us as Americans."
Thanks to rules that were changed before this year's presidential contest got underway, there are no delegates from Democrats up for grabs on Tuesday.
This is because President Biden unofficially pushed for South Carolina to be the first state to award delegates this election cycle.
"For decades, Black voters in particular have been the backbone of the Democratic Party but have been pushed to the back of the early primary process,” President Biden wrote to officials with the Democratic National Committee in 2022. "We rely on these voters in elections but have not recognized their importance in our nominating calendar. It is time to stop taking these voters for granted, and time to give them a louder and earlier voice in the process."
The DNC made the changes — which means that Tuesday's "first in the nation" primary in New Hampshire ran afoul of the new rules, and rendered its delegates ineligible.
New Hampshire holding first primary of 2024, results to follow
Most New Hampshire voters have until 7 p.m. to have a say in the GOP's presidential nominee, while Democrats won't be allocating delegates.
President Biden is generally popular in the state regardless.
According to polling of Democratic primary participants by the Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research, more than 8 in 10 New Hampshire Democrats approve of President Biden's overall handling of the economy.
Roughly 8 in 10 approve of the administration's efforts to address student debt. But only about half approve of how the White House is handling the conflict between Israel and the Palestinians.
Biden, New Hampshire Democrats betting on a low-key write-in campaign
Despite President Joe Biden being the incumbent, challengers are launching extremely unlikely bids for the Democratic Party nomination.
Self-help author Marianne Williams and U.S. Rep. Dean Phillips were also on New Hampshire's Democratic primary ballot.
Phillips acknowledged his performance in New Hampshire on Tuesday night and thanked supporters for turning out.
He said his campaign would continue into South Carolina starting on Wednesday.
But in comments to reporters after the race was called, Phillips appeared to criticize the Democratic Party and its support of President Biden's candidacy.
"They are propagating a nightmare by literally misleading and misinforming Democratic voters who have been led to believe that [President Biden] is going to win this next election," Phillips said. "Show me data that indicates he can, let alone will. He is in decline numerically, actuarially and reputationally. That's just the truth."
"My party is doing this country a massive disservice tonight," he said.
Final vote counts for President Biden and other candidates may not be immediately apparent.
Many cities and towns in New Hampshire are reporting all results for Democratic write-in candidates as a single number at first.
It takes time for poll workers on the ground to count votes and assign them to their respective candidates. There may be some delay as those totals are updated.
Decision Desk HQ is predicting upwards of 340,000 votes on Tuesday, which would set a record for turnout for the state — and may contribute to longer waits as vote totals are assigned.
