The 2016 New Hampshire presidential primary is officially on for Feb. 9, one week after the Iowa caucuses.
New Hampshire Secretary of State Bill Gardner, who has the final say on the state’s presidential primary schedule, announced the date Thursday morning, for both the Republican and the Democratic races.
While the New Hampshire primary dates back to 1916, the state didn't earn its "first in the nation" voting status until four years later. After New Hampshire voters make their picks, the next early nominating contests are set to take place in South Carolina and Nevada.
The Primary date has crept earlier and earlier in recent years, as other states have pushed their own primary dates forward to blunt New Hampshire's influence. This year’s primary is actually on the late side by recent standards, but it’s actually quite a bit earlier when you compare it to older elections. Here's a history of New Hampshire Primary dates.
2016: Feb. 9
2012: Jan 10
- Republican winner: Mitt Romney
- Democratic winner: Barack Obama
2008: Jan. 8
- Republican winner: John McCain
- Democratic winner: Hillary Clinton
2004: Jan. 27
- Republican winner: George W. Bush
- Democratic winner: John Kerry
2000: Feb. 1
- Republican winner: John McCain
- Democratic winner: Al Gore
1996: Feb. 20
- Republican winner: Pat Buchanan
- Democratic winner: Bill Clinton
1992: Feb. 18
- Republican winner: George H.W. Bush
- Democratic winner: Paul Tsongas
1988: Feb. 16
- Republican winner: George H.W. Bush
- Democratic winner: Michael Dukakis
1984: Feb. 28
- Republican winner: Ronald Reagan
- Democratic winner: Gary Hart
1980: Feb. 26
- Republican winner: Ronald Reagan
- Democratic winner: Jimmy Carter
1976: Feb. 24
- Republican winner: Gerald Ford
- Democratic winner: Jimmy Carter
1972: March 7
- Republican winner: Richard Nixon
- Democratic winner: Edmund Muskie
1968: March 12
- Republican winner: Richard Nixon
- Democratic winner: Lyndon B. Johnson
1964: March 10
- Republican winner: Ambassador Henry Cabot Lodge, Jr.
- Democratic winner: Lyndon B. Johnson
1960: March 8
- Republican winner: Richard Nixon
- Democratic winner: John F. Kennedy
1956: March 13
- Republican winner: Gen. Dwight D. Eisenhower
- Democratic winner: Estes Kefauver
1952: March 11
- Republican winner: Gen. Dwight D. Eisenhower
- Democratic winner: Estes Kefauver
(This post has been updated to correct an error in the date of the 1968 primary; Sources: nhprimary100.org, Primary Politics: Everything You Need to Know About How America Nominates its Presidential Candidates)