100th New Hampshire Primary celebrations kick off

Events officially commemorating the 100^th anniversary of New Hampshire’s first-in-the-nation primary kicked off with a gathering at the New Hampshire State Library in Concord. The Granite State began its tradition of hosting the nation’s first presidential primary of the election season in 1916, and has maintained it consistently since 1920.

The event featured a slate of speakers paying tribute to the storied history of New Hampshire’s primary, from Gov. Maggie Hassan to former NH Crossroads host Fritz Wetherbee. Historic ballot boxes were also converted into time capsules to be opened after the next 100 years.

Festivities are being organized by the Presidential Primary Centennial Anniversary Commission, which was created for that purpose last year by the Legislature. The commission is headed by Neil Levesque of the New Hampshire Institute of Politics at Saint Anselm College. 

Updates on additional 100th anniversary events can be found here.