Nikki Haley sweeps first New Hampshire primary with six votes from Dixville Notch

US presidential hopeful Nikki Haley campaigns in New Hampshire

The first New Hampshire primary votes are in — and they are all for former UN ambassador Nikki Haley.

All six eligible voters in Dixville Notch, a small New Hampshire town that has a tradition of opening its polling place just after midnight on Tuesday, cast their vote for Ms Haley, reported CNN.

Four voters were registered Republicans and two were registered independents, the outlet wrote.

“A great start to a great day in New Hampshire,” Ms Haley wrote on X. “Thank you Dixville Notch!”

According to the New York Post, the last time the town predicted the state’s Republican primary outcome was in 2008, when John McCain won the precinct.

President Joe Biden did not appear on the precinct’s ballot, while his Democratic rival, Minnesota Rep Dean Phillips did, but he did not receive any votes.

Every win in the state is important for Ms Haley, the underdog in the race against Donald Trump.

A recent poll indicated that Mr Trump is leading her in the state by double digits. However, that poll was taken before Florida Gov Ron DeSantis suspended his campaign.

Tuesday’s GOP primary race will be the first in 2024 in which two candidates will go head-to-head, as the field has dwindled significantly in the past two weeks. Mr DeSantis, entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy and former New Jersey Gov Chris Christie all dropped out of the race.

Mr Trump pulled into first place in the Iowa caucuses, followed by Mr DeSantis. Ms Haley came in third place and Mr Ramaswamy finished in fourth.

The next set of New Hampshire primary results probably won’t come out until this evening, as polls start to close at 7pm ET.

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