Although the 2004 presidential elections are two years away, potential candidates for the Democratic nomination have already started trekking through New Hampshire hoping to establish connections that will help them later in the race.
Colin Van Ostern, communications director of the New Hampshire Democratic Party, noted that Democratic hopefuls such as Sen. John Kerry, Rep. Dick Gephardt, Al Gore, Sen. Joe Lieberman and Vermont Gov. Howard Dean have started visiting New Hampshire since July.
"Al Sharpton's coming to your neck of the woods soon, too," he said, referring to the well-known activist's upcoming visit to Dartmouth on Sunday.
Van Ostern suggested that these visitors should not be thought of as "candidates."
"These are national Democratic leaders for whom this is an option to take in the future -- some haven't made the decision to run yet, but they want to keep the option open," he said.
"There are still many questions about who will run and who won't," he said.
Linda Fowler, a professor of government and director of the Rockefeller Center, noted that Democratic leaders' decisions about whether or not to run may depend on President George W. Bush's levels of popularity as the election draws nearer.
Fowler saw a situation parallel to 1992, she said, in which George H.W. Bush enjoyed such high approval ratings after the Gulf War that several of the most well-known Democratic leaders opted not to run against him.
The younger Bush has gotten such high approval ratings after Sept. 11 and the subsequent military conflict in Afghanistan that national Democratic leaders might opt not to challenge him, she said.
The recent appearances of Sen. John Edwards of North Carolina, on the New Hampshire plain have especially attracted attention. While Edwards is not as well-known as rivals like Bradley or Gore, many New Hampshire voters reacted to him favorably during his visit, The New York Times reported.
Fowler pointed out that, like Bill Clinton, who won the nomination in 1992, Edwards is a moderate Southerner who has not been well-known nationally.
"Both of the two Democrats who have won the White House in the last several decades have been moderate Southerners," Fowler said.
Fowler and Van Ostern saw advantages and disadvantages to Edwards' anonymity.
"The advantage is that people are curious about him," Van Ostern said.
Likewise, Fowler saw that Edwards may benefit from "Clinton fatigue."
While Gore was a former vice-president and did win the popular vote in the last election, Fowler said the questions of "whether Gore wants it and whether he can send clear messages to voters" remain open.
She noted that there have been some signs suggesting that enthusiasm about Gore is dwindling. For example, an intimate fund-raising dinner in Washington Gore held recently was poorly attended.
Van Ostern, though, said that Edwards' anonymity does work against him in that voters aren't familiar with his positions on relevant issues or his political achievements.
"It is a problem in that he can walk into a diner in Manchester and many people will have no idea who he is," he said.
Neither Van Ostern nor Fowler saw it as unusual that campaigning should start so early.
