Assault on the primary

New Hampshire delegate Tom Rath says a last-ditch effort to change the GOP presidential nominating rules, that govern the state's first-in-the-nation primary, will likely fail. Delegates at the GOP convention in Cleveland are voting on the rules this afternoon. Some are hoping to propose an amendment from the floor, he said, that would reward states that bar independent voters from their contests. It would affect New Hampshire because the GOP primary here is open to independents. The proposed rules would not affect the early voting order. Iowa holds its caucuses before New Hampshire's primary. Some Republicans have pushed to reduce the states' influence in the presidential nominating process, arguing the early carve-out states wield too much power. But New Hampshire primary supporters say the contest forces candidates to meet voters face-to-face and toughens them up. The proposal is unlikely to go anywhere, said Rath, a John Kasich delegate and Concord resident. "It's not going to happen," he said. New Hampshire led the country in voter turn-out during the February primary, according to the Union Leader. It was 52.4 percent.