Campaigns Plumbing the Independent Mind: Obama, McCain compete for NH Independents

[DeepModem Mom]

NYT: Campaigns Plumbing the Independent Mind
By JEFF ZELENY
Published: January 6, 2008

NASHUA, N.H. — The race for the White House, steeped in appeals to each party’s base for nearly a year, is for the next few days largely in the hands of voters who identify themselves with neither party.

Democratic and Republican candidates are feverishly appealing to independents ahead of the primary on Tuesday in New Hampshire, where unaffiliated voters are permitted to cast ballots in either party’s contest. While there is competition within the parties for undeclared voters, the most intriguing matchup is between two candidates from opposing parties who have cultivated anti-establishment images: Senators Barack Obama and John McCain.

Driving these voters, campaign strategists in both parties say, is a thirst for change and a strong desire to break with the Bush administration. Concern over the war in Iraq, despite recent advances in security there, also remains on the minds of independent voters and has contributed to a shift toward Democrats in New Hampshire.

Mr. Obama, of Illinois, turned his Democratic victory speech in Iowa on Thursday night into a new television commercial here, specifically focusing on independents with a call to bridge partisan divides. At the same time, Mr. McCain, of Arizona, appealed to independent-minded voters who helped him upset George W. Bush in the Republican primary here eight years ago, saying, “You haven’t changed and neither have I.”

The scramble for the independent vote, the nearly 45 percent of the electorate here who are registered as neither Democrat nor Republican, is evolving partly into a battle between the two mens’ campaigns. Strategists believe that about two-thirds of these voters are leaning Democratic, making them particularly critical to Mr. Obama’s effort to win a second contest in a row. Meanwhile, Mr. McCain is trying to tap into this pool of voters to edge out former Gov. Mitt Romney of Massachusetts....

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/06/us/politics/06independents.html?hp=&pagewanted=all

[RDANGELO]

1. Obama can kill two birds with one stone.

If he wins the independents, he can substantiate himself as the front runner and knock out the Republican's strongest candidate, John McCain.

[DeepModem Mom]

2. Wow! You are correct, Sir! nt