New Hampshire primary live updates: Polls open across state

Follow live updates as voters hit polls for 2024 New Hampshire primary

Updated: 1:49 PM EST Jan 23, 2024

The first-in-the-nation New Hampshire primary is being held Tuesday, with polling locations open across the state.1:40 p.m.Regarding problems at the polls, officials with the attorney general’s office said they have received some calls, mostly complaints of electioneering, when a person wears campaign-related clothes or hold signs in polling places where those items aren’t allowed.Anyone who has a problem at the polls can call the attorney general’s hotline at 866-868-3703.12:45 p.m.Secretary of State David Scanlan has been visiting polling locations across the state and said he has seen a steady stream of enthusiastic voters.There are 873,357 total registered voters in New Hampshire – 267,768 registered Republicans and 261,254 registered Democrats. Another 344,335 registered voters are undeclared.Scanlan has predicted that a record 322,000 votes will be cast in the Republican primary, topping the total in 2016, when 287,000 voted in that contest.12:30 p.m. Moderators out on the Seacoast say that each election is different, but at the Connie Bean Community Center, there seems to be a bit of a lack of interest in this primary compared to years past. As of noon, around 300 voters stopped by to vote since polls opened Tuesday morning, a poll moderator told WMUR, saying a lack of candidate visits and the recent departures of candidates from the presidential race could be to blame.Some voters who were there expressed why they made their pick. “I came out here and did a write-in. He’s not my first choice, not at all, but as far as I’m concerned, he’s what we have and we have to go with him,” Richard Katz, a voter, said. “He’s not Trump, so,” voter Tom Welch added.12 p.m.After months of campaigning, it’s now up to the New Hampshire voters, many of whom were up early to cast their votes.There was a line before the polls opened at 6 a.m. at the Webster School polling place in Manchester. The excitement for the primary was obvious.>> Download the free WMUR app to get updates on the go: Apple | Google Play <<“I was motivated, set the alarm. Feels good to get out and vote this morning,” Don Yarbrough, a voter, said.Voters were up bright and early to get their vote in.”We are looking for democracy by the end of the year,” Linda Liadis, a voter, said.So what are Granite Staters looking for in their next president? “Someone who’s not indicted,” John Reck, a voter, said.”I’d like to see somebody maybe from my generation?” Yarbrough said.”Somebody we don’t get embarrassed about,” Nick Liadis, a voter, said. “Somebody to make us proud.”He might not be on the ballot, but people told WMUR they wrote in the president’s name.”I wrote in Joe Biden,” Reck said.”I voted for Biden,” LInda Liadis said. Some want Nikki Haley to win, as evidenced by the crowds of supporters outside the Webster School on Tuesday morning.But some voted for Haley, not even because they necessarily want her as the next president. “I voted for Nikki Haley, and I’ll be honest, it was more a vote against Trump,” Thom Lavoie, a voter, said.”We just want people to stop Trump, and Haley is the way to do it,” a Haley supporter said. And in the smaller-but-mighty crowd for Democratic presidential hopeful Dean Phillips, 2020 presidential candidate and former New York City mayoral candidate Andrew Yang was doing some last-minute campaigning.”He’s gonna help us turn the page on the battle of the 80-year-olds that no one wants,” Yang said. “And, believe it or not, he actually campaigned here in the state of New Hampshire. Imagine that.” 11:15 a.m. Memo from Haley camp suggests campaign moving on regardless of New Hampshire outcomeA memo to Nikki Haley’s presidential campaign staff indicates that the Republican candidate intends to continue her campaign regardless of the outcome of New Hampshire’s first-in-the-nation primary vote.In the memo obtained by News 9, Haley’s campaign manager, Betsy Ankney, describes a path toward Super Tuesday. After South Carolina, the campaign says it will head to Michigan, Washington, D.C., Idaho and North Dakota before the big day on March 5.”Until then, everyone should take a deep breath,” Ankney wrote. “The campaign has not even begun in any of these states yet. No ads have been aired and candidates aren’t hustling on the ground. A month in politics is a lifetime. We’re watching democracy in action. We’re letting the people have a voice. That’s how this is supposed to work.”The memo flags Virginia, Texas, Maine, Massachusetts, Minnesota, North Carolina and Vermont as Super Tuesday states with “favorable demographics.”The memo closes with a call-out to the next primary on the calendar: “See y’all in South Carolina.”6:30 a.m.New Hampshire Secretary of State David Scanlan is predicting a record turnout for the first-in-the-nation primary Tuesday.Polls opened in Manchester at 6 a.m. Many polling locations will stay open until 7 p.m., 7:30 p.m. or 8 p.m. Polling hours vary across the state. Voters are encouraged to check on the hours before they head out to cast their ballots.>> Everything you need to know before votingRegistered Democrats and Republicans will be voting in their respective primaries. Undeclared voters must choose between a Republican or Democratic ballot. They will be declared a member of the party they choose to vote in unless they fill out a card or sign a list to return to undecided status after voting.People who are not registered to vote can do so at the polls, but they are asked to keep in mind that long lines are expected, at times. Unregistered voters will need to bring proof of identity, age and domicile. If they do not have those documents, they can sign a Qualified Voter Affidavit under oath in front of an election official.Scanlan said he expects 322,000 Granite Staters to vote in the Republican primary and 88,000 people to vote in the Democratic primary. Scanlan also said that, as of Friday, 26,162 people had requested an absentee ballot. Sixty-five percent of those requests were for Republican ballots.You can find more information about the voting process and the candidates in our New Hampshire primary guide.Primary resources:Everything you need to know about the 2024 New Hampshire primaryCompare, contrast 2024 presidential candidates on key issuesLearn more about Get the Facts and view all WMUR fact checks hereRe-watch “Conversation with the Candidate”See highlights from Candidate CaféSign up for the WMUR Politics newsletterSee election coverage on Very Local