Dixville Notch, New Hampshire Every two years, the world looks at this idyll - it is deeply divided
The polling stations in the USA are open, in Dixville Notch they are already closed again - and the result has been announced. About a place that is in the global spotlight every four years.
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- Dixville Notch delivers the first results of the US election.
- It goes back to a famous voting tradition.
- This year, the community is more divided than ever.
Every four years, the residents of Dixville Notch are the focus of world attention. This is astonishing for a community that currently has just six voters. However, an electoral tradition dating back to 1960 puts the small town in New Hampshire - around 30 km from the Canadian border - in the media spotlight every two years: during the midterms and the presidential elections.
The voting process in Dixville Notch is as follows: The six eligible voters traditionally meet at midnight in the now defunct Balsams Hotel. A secret ballot is then held and as soon as all the ballots have been cast, the votes are counted and the result announced.
As you can imagine, this only takes a few minutes.
The result this year: a 3:3 draw.
Dixville Notch voters have supported the Democratic candidate in the last two presidential elections. In 2020, the community unanimously cast five votes for President Joe Biden and in 2016, Hillary Clinton received four of seven votes - two went to Trump and one to Libertarian candidate Gary Johnson.
From 1968 to 2012, the village always voted for the eventual nominee in the Republican primaries. In the most recent primary, all six voters voted for Nikki Haley.
This year, a deep rift runs through the village.
Les Otten, a 75-year-old resident who says he's "been a Republican since I was seven years old," tells CNN, "Nowhere in the Pledge of Allegiance does it say anything about pledging allegiance to one person. And I think at the end of the day, Trump has made it clear that you have to pledge allegiance to him, and he alone can solve the problem, and that's about as anti-democratic as I can understand."
However, the result is not enough to gauge the mood of the US election. However, the result in the village on the mountain pass between Dixville Peak and Sanguinary Mountain, known for its beautiful hiking trails, skiing and golfing opportunities, is perhaps a final indication of how divided the USA currently is - and how close the race for the presidency could be.
