McCain predicts victory in New Hampshire

By Bryan Bender, Globe Staff

MANCHESTER, N.H. -- Senator John McCain returned from Iowa to New Hampshire this afternoon, vowing that "we will win" Tuesday's primary in the Granite State.

Building on his momentum in recent days -- several polls show him neck-and-neck with Mitt Romney at the head of the pack -- McCain welcomed the late endorsement of New Hampshire Republican leader Ted Gatsas.

Gatsas, who greeted McCain at the Manchester-Boston Regional Airport, said he is convinced McCain is the most prepared to handle national security.

McCain was also flanked by his wife and Senator Joseph I. Lieberman, the Connecticut independent, who both spent the day crisscrossing the state on his behalf.

Before boarding the "Straight Talk Express" for several more stops in Derry and Manchester tonight, McCain said he believes that his unexpected rise in the polls is evidence that voters are taking another look for an experienced candidate.

"I am the one with the experience and judgment to lead this nation in difficult times," he told the airport gathering.

The Arizona Republican, who won the New Hampshire primary in 2000, also credited recent newspaper endorsements, including the Boston Globe and Boston Herald, for "the momentum here."

"There are very large numbers of undecided voters here," he added.

Lieberman, waiting for McCain in the Wiggins Airways terminal, called his Senate colleague's rise in New Hampshire "a remarkable comeback."

Voters were "infatuated with one or more of the other candidates but they are coming back to McCain," Lieberman said.