Primary Colors

THE ROAD TO 1600 PENNSYLVANIA AVENUE BEGINS (AND SOMETIMES ENDS) IN NEW HAMPSHIRE, MAKING PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATES A COMMON SIGHT ON CAMPUS EVERY FOUR YEARS.

The last U.S. presidential hopeful to win the White House without stepping foot in New Hampshire was Republican Dwight D. Eisenhower, who defeated Sen. Robert A. Taft (R-Ohio) in the first modern New Hampshire primary in 1952. Since then the state’s “first in the nation” primary status makes it—and Hanover—a mandatory stop for candidates. “Students get a firsthand view of the parade of candidates and witness how they lay out ideas, handle questions and cope with opponents,” says Jennifer Avellino ’89, who covered the 1988 primary as news director for WDCR/WFRD before she went on to cover politics for CNN for 17 years. “They also get a special look at the spin cycle of presidential politics. Students can judge for themselves whether the press buys into the spin.” With candidates once again in Hanover for the October 11 debate, here’s a look at some of the presidential wannabes who’ve come to campus in search of votes.

ClinClinton and Obama supporters show their colors before the 2007 Democratic debate.

Democrat Jesse Jackson meets the press prior to the College’s first presidential debate, in

“I want to prove Dartmouth can produce Democrats,” former Massachusetts Sen. Paul Tsongas ’62 (far left), tells DAM in a story about his 1992 presidential bid. Here he takes a campaign break with a dip in the Dartmouth pool.

MTV’s Tabitha Soren (left) interviews Sen. Bob Dole (R-Kans.) during a campaign stop in 1996.

Retired Gen. Wesley Clark (above right) flips but doesn’t flop at a 2004 campaign breakfast sponsored by Dartmouth’s Young Democrats.

Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) speaks at an Alumni Gym rally (right) on the morning of the January 8, 2008, primary.

Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), with wife Cindy (opposite page), addresses a crowd from the steps of Alpha Delta the day before the 2000 New Hampshire primary.

Supporters turn out for favorite son New York Gov. Nelson Rockefeller ’30 (above, at right) as he campaigns on Main Street for the 1964 Republican primary, which he lost to former Massachusetts Sen. Henry Cabot Lodge Jr.

Former Gov. Howard Dean (D-Vt.), Sen. Joe Lieberman (D-Conn.) and Rep. Dennis Kucinich (D-Ohio) relax onstage (left) before the Democratic forum held in 2004.

Sen. John F. Kennedy (D-Mass.) speaks on campus (above left) about foreign policy just days before clobbering Paul C. Fisher in the 1960 New Hampshire primary.

Former Louisiana Gov. Buddy Roemer (left, seated) takes a break at the Hanover Inn following his July 2011 announcement that he’s seeking the Republican presidential nomination.

“I have nothing to hide,” former Sen. Gary Hart (D-Colo.) tells reporters gathered at the Hanover Inn for a May 1987 news conference called to address the sex scandal created by his relationship with Donna Rice. Days later he dropped out of the race.

A morning jog with the brothers of Beta Theta Pi (near right) provides little momentum for Sen. Richard Lugar (R-Ind.), who loses to Pat Buchanan in the 1996 primary.

Presidential hopeful and former Vice President Walter Mondale (far right) draws a number to determine his place on stage for the 1984 Democratic debate from a top hat belonging to an earlier presidential contender— Daniel Webster, class of 1801.