PORTSMOUTH, N.H. — Potential candidates in the 2028 Democratic presidential race are coming to New Hampshire, as the Democratic National Committee’s rulemaking panel weighs whether to recognize the state’s traditional first-in-the-nation primary.
Pete Buttigieg, who served as transportation secretary during the Biden administration, will speak about law and democracy at Dartmouth College in Hanover, N.H., on Feb. 20. California Governor Gavin Newsom will take his book tour to The Music Hall in Portsmouth, N.H., on March 5. Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear will fund-raise with local Democrats on March 7-8, according to WMUR.
Their visits offer some evidence of New Hampshire’s potential relevance to the 2028 contest after President Biden and the DNC snubbed the state in 2024. That signal is bolstered by the fact that other potential candidates — including Illinois Governor JB Pritzker; senators Cory Booker, Amy Klobuchar, and Ruben Gallego; and others — have made similar treks to the Granite State in recent months.
That said, New Hampshire’s coveted spot at the front of the party-approved Democratic nominating calendar isn’t guaranteed. The DNC Rules and Bylaws Committee is considering applications from a dozen states vying for a handful of spots in the “early” window for the 2028 contest. Some committee members have said New Hampshire’s law requiring officials to hold the state’s primary at least one week before any similar contest is an insufficient justification to respect the tradition, as WMUR reported.
Biden, who successfully pushed for the DNC to recognize South Carolina as hosting the party’s first-in-the-nation 2024 primary, is slated to return to the Palmetto State on Feb. 27 for a reception to celebrate the six-year anniversary of the primary election victory that paved his way to the Democratic nomination in 2020, according to The State.
If the DNC opts to recognize any state other than New Hampshire as hosting the first primary, the move would almost certainly trigger a 2024-style showdown with state officials. That could dissuade potential candidates from spending time in New Hampshire as 2028 draws near.
Early polling suggests Buttigieg and Newsom rank among the top picks for voters likely to participate in New Hampshire’s 2028 Democratic primary. On the Republican side, polling shows Vice President JD Vance with an early lead.
But a lot can change between now and New Hampshire’s 2028 presidential primary election, which is likely just shy of two years away.
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Steven Porter can be reached at steven.porter@globe.com. Follow him @reporterporter.