Trump Seeks First Primary Win as New Hampshire Starts Voting

MANCHESTER, N.H. - Tuesday, New Hampshire gets its turn to cast votes in the presidential race. Donald Trump hopes to take control on the Republican side and Bernie Sanders could register his first victory against Hillary Clinton.

For months, Trump has been the clear frontrunner in New Hampshire and if polls ring true, "The Donald" could see his first primary win.

"We need the proper leadership and we don't have it now," Trump told a crowd of supporters.

Second place is a bigger question. Iowa caucus winner, Ted Cruz, has a shot. His evangelical message played well in Iowa. Here in the 'live free or die" state, he's talking more like a libertarian.

"The men and woman in this room love this country, love liberty, love the Constitution. The men and women in this room, I believe, I know will crawl over broken glass with a knife between your teeth fighting to save this country," Cruz declared.

Marco Rubio, a strong third finisher in Iowa, would be very happy with second in New Hampshire. Negative reviews from his weekend debate performance, however, could lead to a possible slide. But Rubio says he's moving on.

"Why do you keep saying the same thing about Obama trying to change America? I'm gonna keep saying that a million times because it's true," Rubio said, doubling down on his stance from the debate.

The political terrain here in New Hampshire is much different than Iowa. It's more about offering economic solutions than fiery messages on social issues.

That's one reason we're seeing other candidates do better here. One of them is Ohio Gov. John Kasich, who's basically camped out here in the Granite State. He's done more than 100 town halls, hoping for a big breakthrough.

Kasich wants to be the candidate of commonsense solutions and he's preaching compassionate conservatism too.

"When we listen to one another, help one another, we make such a stronger and better world. Don't we? And a more beautiful world," Kasich said at a recent town hall meeting. "Maybe you wouldn't hear that at a town hall. Maybe you wouldn't hear that out of a Republican. But I've learned that here in New Hampshire from you."

"So, why don't we slow down and listen and help one another. Is that okay with all of you? What do you think?" Kasich asked to applause.

Two other governor types, Jeb Bush and Chris Christie, also want to be seen as an alternative to Trump or Cruz.  It's worth watching which one gets noticed.

For Democrats, Bernie Sanders is positioned for victory over Hillary Clinton. His socialist talk appeals to the left-leaning crowd up here. We will see if it's a match made in political heaven.

"Over the last 30 years there has been a mass distribution of wealth. The problem is it has gone from the middle class to the top one/tenth of one percent," Sanders said.

There's clear interest with a record turnout in Iowa and state officials here expect record-breaking totals too.

As for the outcome, the Granite State can be unpredictable because nearly half of all voters are either undeclared or independent. That means they can vote Republican or Democrat and many won't decide until the last moment.

"I'm actually going to YouTube Saturday night's debate and re-watch the 90 minutes again," Bill Boyd, an undecided voter, said.

Tonight, voters like that will likely write the next chapter in this presidential novel.