LEBANON, New Hampshire (Reuters) - When Democratic presidential hopeful John Edwards came to New Hampshire this week, he lured crowds of mostly white faces in their 40s and 50s, not unusual for the state that holds the nation's first primary.
Ninety-four percent of the rural New England state's population is white, compared with 67 percent across the nation.
It is also wealthier and older than the rest of the United States, and home to fewer immigrants.
New Hampshire's unusual demographics are one reason other states are holding primaries earlier usual in the 2008 election cycle, arguing that a state so different from the rest of America should not have such a loud voice.
Committed to keeping its first-in-the-nation status, New Hampshire has not yet picked a date for its primary, which most observers expect to come in early January, shortly after Iowa kicks off the process with their own round of nominating caucuses.
Political scientists argue while New Hampshire may not have the same demographic mix as the rest of the country, it does fairly reflect the critical voters who have decided the last few U.S. elections.
"The presidential elections are decided by the swing voters in the center, and New Hampshire has a lot of them," said Linda Fowler, professor of government at Dartmouth College.
Edwards said New Hampshire and the other early-polling states are critical to a successful candidacy.
"It's obviously going to be Iowa, New Hampshire, Nevada and South Carolina," Edwards said at the campaign stop in Lebanon. "All four of those states are huge."
HIGH PARTICIPATION RATES
About 40 percent of New Hampshire's registered voters -- almost 300,000 people -- cast a ballot in the 2004 primary. In Iowa, which is twice the size, only 6 percent of registered voters participated in the 2004 nominating caucuses.
"People here are traditionally used to taking a serious look at national campaigns and I think there is a value in that," said Dr. Jack Cronenwett, a professor of surgery who turned out to hear Edwards' pitch on health care in this city of 12,606 people, about 120 miles northwest of Boston.
The state's voters also take their independence seriously. In 2004, more were registered as "undecided" than as belonging to either party. New Hampshire rules allow primary voters to register with a party just long enough to cast a vote, then reclaim their undecided status. In 2004, more than 80,000 voters took advantage of that option.
COUNTERWEIGHT TO MAJOR CITIES
Locals and experts also argue that because it is such a rural state -- even French President Nicholas Sarkozy came to visit its lake country on his summer vacation this year -- New Hampshire's primary serves as a counterbalance to the nation's huge urban centers, which in many ways drive U.S. politics.
"It may not be as unlike America as a lot of the common wisdom holds," said Kenneth Johnson, senior demographer at The Carsey Institute at the University of New Hampshire in Durham.
The state's south is anchored by the small cities of Manchester and Nashua, as well as outlying suburbs of Boston. It's picturesque middle tier is attracting an influx of older residents drawn to its beauty, while its north remains rural and agricultural, Johnson noted.
Together, those three bands reflect large swaths of the United States outside its major cities, he said.
(Additional reporting by Jason Szep; Editing by David Alexander and David Wiessler)
