Harris faces calls to prove her commitment to NH voters

When Senator Kamala Harris made her first trip to New Hampshire, she attracted an enthusiastic crowd of more than 1,000 people who braved a treacherous February snowstorm to see the person vying to become America's first black female president.

But as the California senator returns to the state this week, she's in a more challenging position.

The number of Democratic presidential candidates has swelled to nearly 20 since her first visit. Some of the spotlight has shifted away from Harris, with attention being lavished recently on Mayor Pete Buttigieg of South Bend, Indiana.

Former Vice President Joe Biden's expected entry into the race this week will further reshape the contest.

But Harris faces a more fundamental hurdle in New Hampshire: skepticism from some over whether she's fully committed to courting voters in the nation's first primary state. Democrats here famously expect intimate, regular access to candidates. For now, they say they aren't getting that from Harris and are warning her to take the state more seriously.

"I don't think she's been there as much as she should be," said Peter Hoe Burling, a former Democratic committeeman in New Hampshire.

"Yes, I understand it is outrageous how New Hampshire presumes to expect the presence of a person running for president, but we do. We're very good at evaluating the character and programs that individual candidates bring."
Harris is aware of the issue. Her February appearance her first-ever to New Hampshire drew a large crowd to Portsmouth's historic South Church, where she told attendees that she wanted to address the "elephant in the room."
If Harris "thinks she's going to win New Hampshire, you have to show up," said Atinuke Cahill, 69, adding that the California Democrat needs to "prove that she wants New Hampshire voters."
Every election cycle, 68-year-old Gayle Esterly said, there seems to be a discussion of "why New Hampshire? Why Iowa? Because they're very white and not representative of the whole country."