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ATKINSON, N.H. — Snow, freezing rain and frigid temperatures didn’t stop hundreds of people from cramming into a country club outside Salem to see former President Trump take a victory lap one day after crushing his Republican opponents in the Iowa caucuses.
Mr. Trump, 77, won with 51% in Iowa and is seeking another big win in New Hampshire, which will hold its primary on Tuesday.
The former president made it to the rally despite a winter storm hammering the state, and he boasted to the crowd about his record-setting win in Iowa.
“We now have our eyes on a very special place. I know that New Hampshire will never let us down, just like 2016 when we won in a landslide.”
Mr. Trump called on his remaining Republican opponents to drop out and unite “and move forward as one team … to beat crooked Joe Biden.”
SEE ALSO: Trump’s Iowa win underscores his dominance on border issues that motivate GOP voters
He faces tougher competition in New Hampshire than in Iowa, where he defeated Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley by 30 percentage points.
Mr. Trump attacked Ms. Haley as a candidate who is endorsed and funded by Democrats. He said she would not support strong border security or keeping the U.S. out of foreign wars.
“They don’t want any more of Trump,” he said of Ms. Haley’s backers. “They don’t want us. They want her.”
Ms. Haley is competitive against the former president in New Hampshire because it is home to more moderate Republican voters. Polls have put Ms. Haley solidly in second place, leaving the more conservative Mr. DeSantis a distant third. The state also has undeclared voters who outnumber Republicans and Democrats and can participate in the primary.
Analysts say many of the undeclared could be Democratic-leaning voters who tilt toward Ms. Haley.
Ms. Haley, who finished third in Iowa, narrowly behind Mr. DeSantis, tried to frame the contest as a two-person race between her and Mr. Trump. She announced that she wouldn’t attend the next two debates with Mr. DeSantis scheduled for later this week unless Mr. Trump participates, which is unlikely.
SEE ALSO: Haley says she’ll skip debates unless Trump participates
“I’ll debate Donald Trump right here, right now. He can’t hide forever,” Ms. Haley, 51, said as she campaigned across the state with Gov. Chris Sununu, who has endorsed her.
After her announcement, ABC News canceled its debate slated for Thursday, even though Mr. DeSantis said he would show up and debate two empty chairs.
The stakes are high for Ms. Haley. Political analysts say she has to win in New Hampshire to keep her campaign alive.
She held a campaign event Tuesday night at the Mount Washington Hotel & Resort in Bretton Woods, about 130 miles north of Salem, and will hold another rally Wednesday in Rochester.
Some analysts predict that another definitive win for Mr. Trump in New Hampshire could end the nomination race long before the Feb. 24 primary in Ms. Haley’s home state of South Carolina, where Mr. Trump is leading by more than 30 points in the polls.
Mr. DeSantis’ chances of winning in New Hampshire are the slimmest of the three candidates. Polls show him at about 7% with likely primary voters. He campaigned in South Carolina early Tuesday and canceled a campaign event in New Hampshire later in the day, citing winter weather and unsafe driving conditions.
Ms. Haley did not let the weather stop her from pursuing Mr. Trump on New Hampshire’s campaign trail, where polling averages show her 16 points behind the former president, half the lead he had in Iowa. A poll released last week by CNN/University of New Hampshire showed Ms. Haley behind the former president by only 7 points.
She could close the gap further by picking up the support from voters who were backing former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, a staunch Trump opponent who dropped out of the primary race earlier this month.
Mr. Trump’s support could also grow. He is poised to pick up votes from biotechnology tycoon Vivek Ramaswamy, who dropped out of the race after finishing fourth in Iowa.
Mr. Ramaswamy, 38, who campaigned as a next-generation Trump, was polling at 5% in New Hampshire before quitting the race. He appeared alongside the former president on the stage in Atkinson and delivered a rousing endorsement.
Mr. Trump’s supporters lined up hours early to make it into the Atkinson Country Club, shivering in driving sleet after an afternoon of snow and temperatures in the 20s.
“He’s worth it,” Trump supporter Charlotte Grimes of Lee said as the line snaking around the building slowly advanced.
Mr. Trump will easily defeat Ms. Haley in New Hampshire, she predicted.
“I think people are hiding and not saying they are voting for him, and they are going to vote for him,” Ms. Grimes said.
Ms. Grimes said she wouldn’t vote for Ms. Haley because she “flip-flops too much.”
She said Mr. Trump would return the prosperous economy and more secure border that vanished under President Biden. Ending illegal immigration that surged under Mr. Biden is her top priority in choosing Mr. Trump.
“If he doesn’t get elected, it’s too late. We’re screwed,” she said.
• Susan Ferrechio can be reached at sferrechio@washingtontimes.com.
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