A handful of individuals identified as town chairmen for Donald Trump’s presidential campaign in New Hampshire are unsure how they ended up in the position – some even plan to vote for other candidates in the state’s Feb. 9 primary.
According to several local reports, the Republican front-runner’s chairmen in four separate Granite State towns were surprised to learn of their affiliation with the Trump campaign.
Nancy Partington, who’s listed as Trump’s Woodsville town chairman, told the Valley News Wednesday she plans to vote for former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush. She was surprised to see her name on a list of more than 200 town chairs for Trump in the first-in-the-nation primary state.
Daymond Steer, a reporter for the Conway Valley Sun, encountered a similar situation when he was named Trump’s town chairman in Tamworth, N.H.
“Apparently, I was put on by accident; it was not something I intended,” Steer told a colleague who reported on the confusion. He conceded that he had, in fact, visited Trump’s campaign website while researching a story and may have accidentally checked a box that enrolled him as a volunteer.
New Hampshire residents Jackie Bergeron and John Hartman were also listed as Trump town chairmen, though they remain confused how they came to occupy such positions.
Bergeron supports Trump, but told local media she wasn’t aware that she’d been listed as the chairman of his campaign in Canaan, N.H.
Meanwhile, Hartman said he may been recognized as Trump’s town chairman of Eaton, N.H., but he remains neutral and refuses to publicly back a single GOP candidate. Hartman is the local GOP chairman in his town.
“I guess they made a mistake,” he told the New Hampshire Union Leader. “The Trump organization is quite aggressive, which they should be.”
Trump, who’s second in the Washington Examiner’s presidential power rankings, is gearing up for a tough battle in both Iowa and New Hampshire once voting begins in both states.
He is led by Texas Sen. Ted Cruz in some state-level polls in Iowa and faces increased competition in the Granite State where Florida Sen. Marco Rubio and New Jersey Gov. Christie continued to rise.
