Getty Pete Buttigieg
Pete Buttigieg is set to come out of New Hampshire with another strong finish. With 90 percent of precincts counted, he is in second place with 24.4 percent of the vote. Senator Bernie Sanders is the projected winner with 26 percent of the vote.
You can watch Buttigieg’s speech in the video below.
Buttigieg began his speech by congratulating his fellow candidates, including Sanders and Senator Amy Klobuchar for their strong showings in the Granite State. He praised his team and supporters, and the state of New Hampshire for asserting “that famous independent streak and thanks to you, a campaign that some said shouldn’t be here at all, has shown that we are here to stay.” This prompted chants of “President Pete” from the crowd.
Buttigieg alluded to the challenges ahead as the campaign moves on to Nevada and South Carolina, with an optimistic tone. “We will welcome new allies to our movement at every step.” He went on, “We go forward knowing this is our only chance, not just to end the era of Donald Trump, but to launch the era that we know must come next… We cannot afford to miss this moment.”
Buttigieg’s mother, Jennifer Anne Montgomery, and husband Chasten joined him at the podium as he wrapped up the speech.
An Average of Recent Polls Had Pete Buttigieg Just Behind Bernie Sanders In the Leadup to New Hampshire
Pete Buttigieg
Pete Buttigieg had a realistic chance to pull out a win in New Hampshire as he rode the momentum gained from Iowa. The results of the Iowa caucuses have trickled out over the past week due to counting issues and problems with a new app, and there were no results on the night of the caucus.
But Buttigieg decided to capitalize on the moment based on his campaign’s internal estimates. Despite the technical uncertainties, Buttigieg got on stage that night and declared that his campaign was “going on to New Hampshire victorious.”
The Iowa Democratic Party eventually announced that Buttigieg had won the most number of state delegates while Senator Bernie Sanders won the popular vote. Some political pundits have criticized Buttigieg for not taking a more cautious approach on the night of the caucus since the results were not yet finalized. But those critiques have not seemed to matter to prospective voters. Buttigieg experienced a rise in the polls in New Hampshire.
An average of recent polls, compiled by Real Clear Politics, predicted Buttigieg would take second behind Sanders in New Hampshire. In recent polls, Sanders garnered, on average, more than 28 percent of the vote while Buttigieg attracted support from about 21 percent of likely voters. Senators Amy Klobuchar and Elizabeth Warren, along with former Vice President Joe Biden, trailed with about 11 percent support each.
Real Clear Politics 2020 Polling Average in New Hampshire [2/6/2020-2/9/2020]
| Bernie Sanders | 28.7.0% |
| Pete Buttigieg | 21.3% |
| Amy Klobuchar | 11.7% |
| Elizabeth Warren | 11% |
| Joe Biden | 11% |
| Andrew Yang | 3.7% |
| Tulsi Gabbard | 3.3% |
| Tom Steyer | 1.7% |
A poll released by CBS News on February 9 indicated that the New Hampshire primary could still surprise the nation. A majority of those surveyed indicated that in the final days of the primary, they were still open to changing their minds about which candidate to support.
39 percent of those asked responded, “I’ve definitely made up my mind” about who they were voting for. But 54 percent said they’d only “probably” made up their minds. Another 6 percent of voters said they expected to change their minds in the final days.
Pete Buttigieg Expressed Optimism About a Victory As the Polls Opened In New Hampshire
Before the Iowa caucuses, Pete Buttigieg expressed optimism that he would do well in that state. But in interviews, he would not specify whether that meant coming in first or second.
His confidence appears to have gone up along with his poll numbers in New Hampshire. In an appearance on MSNBC’s Morning Joe on February 11, when asked if he was predicting a victory, Buttigieg responded, “We think so. We think it’s going to be a really good night.” He acknowledged the competition included “New England senators” but believed his campaign would win anyway.
If you are one of the hundreds of people who knocked doors, made calls, or introduced neighbors to this movement—thank you.
You’ve taken this campaign from four people in a cramped office to a broad coalition ready to beat Trump and write the next chapter of the American story.
In a separate interview with the TODAY show’s Savannah Guthrie, Buttigieg argued that he had a better chance of defeating President Trump in the general election than Senator Sanders because of the expensive price tags associated with the Vermont senator’s policy proposals.
Buttigieg has also faced criticism from Sanders for accepting donations from wealthy individuals. “We have to make sure that we are inviting everybody we can to help defeat Donald Trump.”