"This is a crucial first step on the road to the presidency. Al Gore has now stepped out of the shadow of the president and can be on his own in a tough fight," said Richard Licht '68 while sipping a celebratory cocktail.

Mike Pignatelli, a Gore supporter from Nashua, said that state residents felt they are better off now than they were four years ago.

"For most people here it is the amazing recovery of the economy that is important," he says.

"The Clinton-Gore team planned to concentrate on that from the beginning," he said.

Despite his decisive victory, McCain faces an uphill battle in the coming months. Bush has over $30 million on hand for the rest of the campaign, while McCain has just under $8 million.

Some McCain supporters said their candidate's image as a Washington outsider seeking to reform the campaign finance system lent him credibility in a state traditionally suspicious of front runners.

"We always thought [McCain] had the correct vision for America, and this shows that the voters of New Hampshire agree," said campaign worker Travis F. Batty '02. "Big money always gets beaten by big ideas."

New Hampshire has a history of endorsing outsider candidates; in 1996, Patrick J. Buchanan narrowly defeated Bob Dole in the state, though Dole went on to win the Republican nomination.