A Big McCain Win and a Narrow Gore Victory...

February 1, 2000, 11:35pm EST-- Within moments of the polls closing in New Hampshire, television networks and wire services had declared Arizona Senator John McCain the "decisive" winner of the GOP primary. The call was based on extensive exit polls conducted by media organizations.

On the Democratic side, the race remained too close to call between Vice President Al Gore and former Senator Bill Bradley until 9pm EST when it was clear Gore had managed to claim a slim win in New Hampshire.

 

Democrats 96% of Precincts Reporting			Republicans 96% of Precincts Reporting
Bradley	47%		McCain	49%
			Bush	31%
Gore	52%		Forbes	13%
			Keyes	6%
Uncommitted	1%		Bauer	1%
			Other	1%

McCain told backers he was grateful for their support.

"We have sent a powerful message to Washington that change is coming," McCain told cheering supporters. "The Republican Party recovered its heritage of reform. And it's the beginning of the end of the truth-twisting politics of Bill Clinton and Al Gore... My friends, a wonderful New Hampshire campaign has come to an end but a great national crusade has just begun."

Governor George W. Bush, who won the Iowa caucus and leads in national polls, conceded his loss, calling it "bump in the road" to the White House.

"New Hampshire has long been known as a bump in the road for front-runners and this year is no exception," Bush said in his concession speech.

"We fought the good fight and I'm proud of our supporters and I'm proud of the kind of campaign we fought in New Hampshire," he said. "The road to the Republican nomination and the White House is a long road. Mine will go through all 50 states and I intend it to end at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue,"

If the exit polls remain accurate, McCain support came from almost all aspects of the electorate. McCain garnered support from both the seizable independent voters as well as declared Republicans. Even among those calling themselves conservative, McCain captured a plurality.

"You can't help but believe the size of this," McCain told reporters as he watched the returns. "It's across the board. It came from all sectors: conservatives, moderates, liberals, women. It's a win for the message."

On the Democratic side, exit polls indicated support closely divided between Bradley and Gore. Bradley scored higher among men and did better with higher income voters. Gore did well among female voters and those registered Democrats.

"We're going to march all the way down the field -- state to state, all the way to victory in November," the vice president told cheering supporters tonight.

Bradley congratulated Gore late Tuesday, but vowed to continue fighting.

"We have made a remarkable turnaround, but there is still a tough fight ahead. Al Gore has run a strong race and I congratulate him. But we're smarter and better prepared and ready and eager to continue the fight," Bradley said.

Bradley also opened the next leg of the campaign, challenging Al Gore to a series of weekly debates leading up to the March 7th primaries in New York, California, Maryland, Missouri, Ohio and several other states.