Trump to return to NH for appearance this weekend

Jan. 23—On his first trip to New Hampshire since becoming a 2024 presidential candidate, Donald Trump will appear at the 2023 New Hampshire Republican State Committee annual meeting in Salem on Saturday.

"We are excited to welcome President Trump back to the Granite State to be the keynote speaker at our 2023 Annual Meeting," New Hampshire Republican Chairman Stephen Stepanek said in a statement. "President Trump has long been a strong defender of New Hampshire's First-in-the-Nation Primary status and we are excited that he will join us to deliver remarks to our members."

The state GOP's annual meeting is scheduled to get underway at 10 a.m. at the Seifert Performing Arts Center at Salem High School on Geremonty Drive.

Organizers said in a statement that because of increased security and venue capacity, the annual meeting is open only to "credentialed state committee members and invited guests."

Trump's last public appearance in New Hampshire was at a campaign rally in late October 2020. He made three trips to the Granite State that year.

President Joe Biden defeated Trump in New Hampshire in the 2020 election by a 52%-to-45% margin.

Trump's visit to New Hampshire comes as Democratic Party Chairman Raymond Buckley, Gov. Chris Sununu and leaders from both parties urge the Democratic National Committee's Rules and Bylaws Committee to abandon plans to strip New Hampshire of its first-in-the-nation presidential primary.

Biden and the DNC rules panel have endorsed a 2024 calendar that would give South Carolina the first primary, followed by New Hampshire and Nevada less than a week later.

DNC leaders are recommending the change, insisting the party must have more racially diverse states than New Hampshire lead off the primary nominating process.

The DNC panel is demanding the New Hampshire Legislature either repeal its first-primary state law or risk having its contest pushed back further on the 2024 nominating calendar.

The full DNC is expected to vote on the nominating calendar next month.

On Monday, Buckley said "the path to the White House runs straight through New Hampshire, and Republicans know it."

"Republicans have locked in their primary calendar, and with New Hampshire set as the first state primary, candidates are already beginning to flock to the Granite State," said Buckley in a statement.

"As they gear up to challenge President Biden next year, the RNC and Republican presidential hopefuls will start flooding our airwaves, engaging with voters, and spending big money to win this crucial battleground state. Donald Trump's visit is only the beginning."

"The DNC's plan to penalize New Hampshire and withhold resources from our state jeopardizes the entire Democratic slate in 2024, when both houses of the state legislature, the governorship, two battleground congressional seats that could determine control of Congress, and the presidency are at stake," Buckley added.

The former president's appearance will come a few hours before he heads off to South Carolina, where he is scheduled to be joined by Republican Gov. Henry McMaster and Sen. Lindsey Graham.

Trump announced his 2024 candidacy for president back in November at his Mar-a-Lago club in Palm Beach, Florida.

Before declaring his candidacy, an August 2022 poll by the St. Anselm College Survey Center showed strong support for Trump among Republicans in the Granite State.

The poll put support for Trump at 50%. The nearest candidate to Trump was Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, with 29% in the poll.