Let NH lead the way!

On Jan. 23, New Hampshire can send a message to the country. That’s when voters cast ballots in the presidential primary.

President Biden is playing games and won’t be on the ballot, but all eyes will be on the Republican ticket. Former President Donald Trump will be up against rivals itching to push him off his nearly insurmountable perch.

Maine, Colorado, and possibly Massachusetts, all wanting to bump Trump off ballots, need to back off and let the people decide who should remain in the race for the White House. It’s what the U.S. Supreme Court will rule on anyway.

The GOP primary in the Granite State has a long track record of choosing deserving candidates, so the meddling state courts and secretaries of state (yes, you Maine) are the ones sullying our Democracy.

It seems cliche, but the 2024 race is likely the most pivotal election since the end of World War II. Ukraine is under blistering attack, Hamas terrorists are vowing to keep on slaughtering, compelling Israel to push harder, and the southern border is a sieve.

Iowa’s GOP presidential caucuses are scheduled for Jan. 15, with the Democrats opting for a mail-in vote with results to be announced on March 5, Super Tuesday. That means New Hampshire’s primary will have more punch.

The Republican candidates know the Granite State is a desperately needed prize. Trump is facing a must-win scenario; Nikki Haley needs to come in second, and whoever finishes third can move on to Nevada (Feb. 6, 8), then South Carolina (Feb. 24) and Michigan (Feb. 27, March 2).

The big prize in Super Tuesday, with Massachusetts, Texas, California, Alabama, Minnesota, North Carolina, yes, tiny Maine, and Alaska all lining up with delegates. More states are voting, but it’s clearly a big day.

Trying to ban Trump is a mistake. The Democrats are showing they have no confidence in their candidate. President Biden and VP Kamala Harris are a weak team and voters are fed up with the dysfunction in DC.

Biden is not the answer. But the liberals are sticking with a flawed leader.

The misdirection play launched against Trump using the Fourteenth Amendment is doomed. Last time we checked, and we check a lot, the U.S. Supreme Court has a conservative majority that is not inclined to step into the mess.

So, we circle back to where this coming election season should start: with the voters!

Young voters, independent voters, people who must work on election days, everyone who says their vote doesn’t matter should — this time! — head to the polls and cast a vote. Turnout should eclipse all records — if not just to prove to the likes of Maine’s Democratic Secretary of State Shenna Bellows that she’s the one causing an insurrection.

We’ve said in this space before we respect your opinions too much to tell you how to vote. But casting a vote is empowering.

This election cycle voting will mean more than just approving of one candidate over another. It will show the country and the world that Democracy may not be pretty at times, but it sure beats being drafted into Putin’s war machine or China’s crumbling economic philosophy. Why do you think so many migrants are flooding the border?

We evict presidents every four years or allow them to stay longer if they’ve earned another term. This year it’s too important to sit on the sidelines. Just follow what New Hampshire does.