Democratic Rep. Dean Phillips vowed to press on after garnering about 21 percent of the vote in Tuesdsay’s Democratic primary in New Hampshire.
Phillips and self-help guru Marianne Williamson were the only Democrats to appear by name on the Granite State ballot due to the Democratic National Committee’s decision to skip over New Hampshire and make South Carolina first.
As soon as polls closed at 8 p.m., CNN and The Associated Press almost immediately called the race for President Joe Biden, as his supporters mounted a write-in campaign in the state.
‘Joe Biden is a good man. He is a fine man. Yes, he is everybody,’ Phillips said, when one supporter yelled that wasn’t the case. ‘He’s our president. But I’ve gotta tell you, everyone, he cannot win. The polls are saying he cannot win, his approval numbers are saying he can’t win.’
Additionally, Phillips pointed out, ‘an unknown congressman from Minnesota’ was just able to capture 21 percent. ‘So I’m here, to say are you ready to keep this baby going?’ he asked the cheering crowd gathered at Manchester’s Millyard Museum.
Democratic Rep. Dean Phillips held an election night party at the Millyard Museum in downtown Manchester, New Hampshire, telling supporters he would continue on with his challenge against President Joe Biden after garnering 21 percent of the vote
Phillips high-fives a potential supporter while campaigning in New Hampshire on Tuesday’s primary day. The Minnesota congressman said he planned to continue his campaign and compete in the South Carolina and Michigan primaries
He noted to supporters that his bid was only 10 weeks old – and so support could only grow
‘And we just won 20 percent tonight and nobody knew who we were 10 weeks ago,’ the Minnesota congresman said.
‘So I’ve gotta say man if we had 20 weeks, watch the heck out!’
Phillips said he would take his campaign to South Carolina for the state’s February 3 Democratic primary and then onto Michigan, which holds a primary later in the month.
In what wasn’t quite a Dean Scream, Phillips said, ‘I’ve had so much darn fun, I don’t know what to do with myself!’
‘I don’t have a prepared speech on a teleprompter. We’re not that kind of campaign. I answer questions. I like the press, believe it or not. I’ll do debates, I do town halls, I show up and walk through the snow and I meet all of you,’ he said.
Phillips said that during a CNN interview ahead of the primary a journalist had asked him what it felt like to be polling at 7 percent.
A sign for Dean Phillips sits in the snow near a polling place in downtown Manchester, New Hampshire. The Minnesota congressman received 21 percent of the vote from Granite State Democrats. President Joe Biden’s name wasn’t on the ballot
He said answered, ‘I don’t think that’s quite right.’
‘In fact, we just did three times better than that – I’m telling ya’ll if we can go from 7 percent to 21 percent in nine hours, imagine what we can do in the country,’ Phillips said.
Phillips acknowledged that Biden had indeed won the write-in campaign – garnering around 68 percent of the vote with 80 percent reporting.
‘Congratulations to President Biden who absolutely won tonight,’ he said.
But added, ‘But by no means in a way that a strong incumbent president should, but I respect him, he won.’
He tipped his hat to Williamson as well.
‘She’s been toiling at this for now for two times. She has no attention from the media. Her propositions are ones we should all be thinking about,’ he said of the best-selling author, who was holding her own election night shindig down the street.
‘And I think her courage and her tenacity at a time where we need competition not a coronation should be celebrated by everybody here,’ he told his supporters.
The 55-year-old congressman also noted Trump’s win over former U.N. Amb. Nikki Haley and praised her for staying in the race.
‘I want to celebrate Nikki Haley tonight, for the tenacity she has to stay in this race and still try to take that man down becauase you know what? I think we need to,’ Phillips said.
‘And I think having her in the race and me in the race could be the most important decisions for both of us in our lifetimes,’ he added.