MANCHESTER, N.H. — There were still three hours left before Donald Trump’s rally in the Southern New Hampshire University Arena on Jan. 20. ahead of the New Hampshire Republican Primary on Jan. 23.
The determined Trump followers were preparing for the resurgence of their idol, who intended to win both the Republican Primary and the presidential nomination.
The roughly kilometre-long queue was buzzing with activity, hawkers selling their Trump-branded wares.
Banners in support of Donald Trump in front of the SNHU Arena of Manchester, N.H., where Trump held a rally on Jan. 20. Photo credit: Toni Canyameras
Truck owner, Mike Miller was selling wares — including banners and figures — from in his large van. One of the banners stuck to truck announced that “Jesus is my saviour, Trump is my president.”
“He is a little crazy,” he said of Trump. “But everything goes better with him. I don’t know too much about the capitol attack.”
Donald Trump spoke for one and a half hours, igniting the crowd as he railed against Nikki Haley and President Joe Biden.
Mary Smith was one of the attendees who listened to 77-year-old presidential candidate.
“Republicans promise things for the campaign trail, but they get into Washington and listen to the media or to the Democrats and they don’t fight for what we want. Trump fought for it,” she said.
A track selling Trump merchandising in the surroundings of the SNHU Arena of Manchester, N.H., where the American politician held a rally on Jan. 20. Photo credit: Toni Canyameras
Dave Crafton was another Trump voter who attended the rally.
“I do really believe that the 2020 elections were rigged. They will try to do something again,” he said. “One thing they possibly do is this state allows the Democrats to vote in the primaries, so they are going to vote against Trump.
“They are going to vote for Haley, who seems the person they want to put there,” Crafton said.
Democrats can’t vote in the Republican Primary.
Crafton said Trump didn’t do anything wrong in the capitol attack.
“The first amendment of the Constitution is the right to freedom of speech, the right to assemble things, that is what they were doing on Jan. 6. And nobody knows that the last article is the right to address the grievances,” he said.
A general view of the event of Donald Trump in Manchester, N.H., on Jan. 20. Photo credit: Toni Canyameras
Andrew Smith, a professor of Political Science at the University of New Hampshire, said Trump’s personality is one of his strengths.
“He’s funny and entertaining compared to almost all other politicians, remember he was on television for years,” he said.
“He also has a great ability to troll the press, which endears him to folks with anti-elite sentiments,” Smith said. “Not because they agree with him, but because he is mocking elites who they feel don’t respect them.”
Tyler Landry, a Nashua, N.H., resident accompanied by his partner and child, explained why he thinks there was fraud in the 2020 election.
Some attendants applaud after hearing Donald Trump's speech in the rally the Republican candidate hold in Manchester, N.H., on Jan. 20. Photo credit: Toni Canyameras
“Something happened, it was suspicious. Like in Michigan at 1 a.m. he was up 300,000 votes and then you wake up to check it at 2:30 a.m. and all of a sudden, Biden’s ahead in Michigan,” he said. “Three hundred thousand votes, just all of a sudden, in one or two hours.”
Joseph Jacobs is another supporter of Trump, who won the New Hampshire Primary on Jan. 23, in his duel against Nikki Haley by just more than 11 points.
“I think they are going after Trump, but they don’t have anything to put him in jail,” he said.