White House Hopefuls to Appear in Televised Debates Ahead of New Hampshire Primary

The Democratic and Republican U.S. presidential candidates will appear in nationally televised debates late Saturday from the northeastern state of New Hampshire, site of the next in a series of party nominating votes.

The back-to-back debates will be the first since Democrat Barack Obama and Republican Mike Huckabee scored strong victories in Thursday’s Iowa caucuses. The runners-up in both parties will attempt to slow Obama’s and Huckabee’s momentum heading into Tuesday’s New Hampshire primary election.

Obama, the first-term Illinois senator, will try and fend off challenges from former North Carolina Senator John Edwards and Senator Hillary Clinton of New York, who finished in second and third place in Iowa, respectively.

Huckabee, a former governor of Arkansas, is facing challenges from former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney and Arizona Senator John McCain.

McCain’s once-lagging campaign has gained momentum in recent weeks, and he is considered among the favorites in New Hampshire.

Two Democrats who trailed badly in Iowa, Senators Joseph Biden of Delaware and Christopher Dodd of Connecticut, have abandoned their bids for the Democratic nomination, but New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson and Ohio Representative Dennis Kucinich are still in the race.

After New Hampshire’s primary election Tuesday, other states are holding separate votes in the coming weeks and months. The state-by-state presidential nominating process leads to the Democratic and Republican parties’ national conventions in August and September, setting the stage for a general election in November.

Some information for this report was provided by AFP, AP and Reuters.

by VOA News

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