CONCORD, N.H.—Sen. Barack Obama didn't win New Hampshire's Democratic primary, but he was the most popular Democrat among Republicans who wrote in their choice on their ballots.
According to the Secretary of State's office, Obama won 1,800 write-in votes from Republicans, while Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton -- who won the Democratic primary -- got 1,743.
Republican Sen. John McCain, the GOP primary winner, got 932 write-in votes in on the Democratic side, followed by Mitt Romney's 611 votes.
The number of write-in votes for any candidate didn't come close to the more than 5,000 Democrats who wrote in President Ronald Reagan in the 1984 primary.
In 1992, consumer advocate Ralph Nader received 3,258 write-in votes from Republicans and 3,054 votes from Democrats.
But with no incumbent or sitting vice president running this year, the field was wide open and the choices plentiful.
"This time there was someone for everyone on the ballot in both party primaries," said Secretary of State William Gardner.
Still, some voters used their ballots to send a message. A few Derry Republicans offered up Reagan, CNN's Lou Dobbs and former Secretary of State Colin Powell as their choice. Manchester Democrats wrote in New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady, author Mark Twain and Stephen Colbert, host of Comedy Central's "The Colbert Report"
Then there was the voter in Portsmouth's Ward 3 who apparently couldn't make up his or her mind and wrote in "undecided."
"I'm not sure I've seen that before," Gardner said.
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Information from: New Hampshire Union Leader, http://www.unionleader.com
