McCain, Clinton pull out wins in N.H.

By Scott Helman and Susan Milligan, Globe Staff

MANCHESTER, N.H. -- Senator John McCain of Arizona delivered an electric jolt to the Republican presidential contest tonight by decisively capturing New Hampshire’s presidential primary, and Democrat Hillary Clinton apparently revived her White House hopes with a narrow win.

The Associated Press and NBC projected Clinton the winner over Barack Obama of Illinois in a contest that polls suggested Obama would win by a healthy margin. Former senator John Edwards of North Carolina was projected a distant third.

Winning a race that appeared to be drawing record numbers of voters on an unseasonably warm winter’s day, McCain buffeted the presidential prospects of his chief rival, Mitt Romney, who held a sizable lead over the GOP field here just weeks ago and once had hoped the Granite State, where he has a summer home, would put him on the fast track to the nomination.

The victory was a remarkable showing for the 71-year-old senator, whose campaign was deemed all but over last summer after massive spending and lackluster fund-raising left his campaign effort nearly broke. Hammered by conservatives for his advocacy of immigration reform and deserted by independents over his vocal support for the Iraq war, McCain was nonetheless able to claw back into the race.

‘‘Thank you, thank you, thank you,’’ McCain told elated supporters last night, as cheers of ‘‘Mac is back!’’ punctuated his victory speech. ‘‘Tonight, we sure showed ‘em what a comeback looks like.’’

Former Arkansas governor Mike Huckabee, coming off his big victory in last week’s Iowa caucuses, came in third, and former New York mayor Rudy Giuliani and US Representative Ron Paul of Texas were battling for fourth place.

Exit polling data offered some indication of who voted for the winners, and why. In the Republican race, voters appeared to base their choices more on character than on issues. Republican voters, according to a CNN exit poll, said that while they preferred Romney on the issues, but they simply liked McCain better.

Romney’s failure to win either Iowa or New Hampshire puts another dent in his presidential ambitions: His plan had long banked on more than a pair of second-place finishes in the first two states. Tonight, he vowed in an upbeat speech to fight on.

‘‘I want to make sure that the America that this family inherits and your family inherits is an America that remains strong and the hope of the earth,’’ he told supporters.

McCain’s win put the GOP race on an uncertain trajectory heading into important showdowns later this month in Michigan, South Carolina, and Florida. Huckabee and former senator Fred Thompson of Tennessee will battle in South Carolina, and Giuliani is looking to Florida to jump-start what he hopes will be a late surge for his campaign, further fueled by victories in delegate-rich states such as New York and California on Feb. 5.

McCain and Romney now head to Michigan, a newly pivotal state in this year’s accelerated primary calendar where both men claim roots. McCain won the state in 2000 and has a network of influential supporters there. Romney was born in Michigan, where his last name is political gold since his father, George, was a three-term governor. Romney launched his campaign last year from suburban Detroit.

Despite his come-from-behind win here last night, McCain faces tough fights in the South and suffers from a dearth of cash that could imperil his prospects in the broad swath of contests Feb. 5. Huckabee, a Baptist minister still glowing from his win in the Iowa caucuses, appeals to evangelical Christians but is opposed by establishment GOP forces.

The Democratic contest remained close late tonight, capping a seesaw race that had Clinton ahead by as many as 20 points just months ago before she slipped in the polls, trailing Obama by more than 10 points in some surveys just before the primary.

An Obama win would have made him the clear front-runner, though with Clinton — who has raised more than $100 million and who is ahead in many polls in the upcoming states — still very much in the race.