On August 12, the New Hampshire Secretary of State’s Office announced that the state would hold a first-in-the-nation presidential primary on February 9, 2021, despite the Democratic National Committee’s efforts to delay the traditional start of the nominating process and cancel the New Hampshire primary. The move immediately drew rebukes from the DNC as well as both local and national presidential campaigns, with DNC chair Tom Perez calling it a “reckless effort” that would “undermine the nominating process” and put the “integrity” of the DNC at risk. New Hampshire Secretary of State Bill Gardner, however, defended the decision, calling it a “democratic obligation” to give voters a say in their party’s nominee for President.
