Beto O'Rourke plans whirlwind tour of state

DURHAM – Julian Castro acknowledges that right now he’s a long shot for the Democratic presidential nomination.

But the former San Antonio mayor who later served as secretary of Housing and Urban Development under President Barack Obama, says that with the first-in-the-nation New Hampshire primary still more than 10 months away, time is on his side.

“If the election were held tomorrow, I know that I wouldn’t win tomorrow. But the election’s not held tomorrow. We still have 47 weeks until New Hampshire votes,” Castro said in an interview Monday with Seacoast Media Group.

The candidate also contrasted himself with some of his 2020 Democratic rivals who’ve served in Congress, touting “I’m one of the few folks in this race that have executive experience. That has a track record of getting things done. And I believe that people are ready for somebody who actually knows what they’re doing in that position.”

Castro also contrasted himself with fellow Texan Beto O’Rourke, who’s also running for the Democratic presidential nomination.

As Castro arrived in New Hampshire – for his second trip since declaring his candidacy in January - O’Rourke announced an eye-popping $6.1 million fundraising haul in the first day of his presidential campaign, the most yet by any 2020 Democratic White House hopeful. O’Rourke declared his candidacy last week, with the ensuing swing grabbing large crowds and extensive media coverage.

“I didn’t grow up the front runner. In the neighborhood that I grew up in, the way that I grew up, the way that a lot of people of different backgrounds grow up, they don’t grow up the front runner,” said Castro, the only Latino candidate in the race.

While O’Rourke has been criticized the past few days for growing up privileged, Castro emphasized that being a longer shot candidate who grew up with modest means could benefit him at the ballot box.

“I’m going to go out there and speak to a whole bunch of people in New Hampshire and across the country that don’t feel like they’re the front runner either these days. And I believe that’s a lot of people,” he pointed out.

Asked about the wall-to-wall media coverage of O’Rourke’s launch and his early foray on the campaign trail, Castro said, “My hope is that all of the candidates that are in this race, the 15 or 16 in this race, will have an opportunity to show the American people what they’re about.”

“The Democratic Party learned a lot from the experience in 2016 and because of that they’ve made positive changes to ensure that people across the spectrum have a voice. The networks hopefully have learned a lot as well. And hopefully they’ll make changes in terms of how they treat all of the candidates. That’s just as important because the voters rely on those networks to get their information,” he added.

Castro was interviewed after meeting with students, faculty, and nearby voters at an event held in the atrium at the University of New Hampshire’s Peter T. Paul College of Business and Economics. It was the candidate’s second stop in a jam-packed day long swing through New Hampshire.

O’Rourke’s ambitious NH itinerary

As Castro was taking questions at UNH, O’Rourke’s campaign announced that the former three-term congressman from Texas would make stops in every New Hampshire county in a 48-hour swing starting Tuesday evening.

The campaign said that O’Rourke’s visit would kick off with a meet and greet at Keene State College on Tuesday evening and that the swing “will include events in all 10 counties of the state.”

They added that O’Rourke will conclude his trip to New Hampshire on Thursday afternoon and that “additional details about the trip are forthcoming.”

O’Rourke will be introduced in Keene by 2018 Democratic gubernatorial nominee Molly Kelly – who lives in nearby Harrisville.

Williamson returns to the Seacoast region

She was recently in Exeter, and White House long shot Marianne Williamson made another stop in the area on Monday. The best-selling spiritual author and adviser and friend to Oprah Winfrey paid a visit to Dover.

The Democratic presidential candidate took a walking tour of some downtown businesses and met with Dover-based attorney Bill Shaheen, a Democratic National Committee member from New Hampshire and longtime party activist who’s married to U.S. Sen. Jeanne Shaheen.

Republican hosting 2020 Democrats in the Seacoast

Castro’s event at UNH was hosted by Alex Talcott, an adjunct business law professor at UNH and adjunct senior lecturer at Great Bay Community College.

Talcott, a registered Republican who’s also the managing partner at Portsmouth-based Seacoast Financial Planning and Tax Services, has now held events at UNH with four 2020 Democratic presidential candidates and likely contenders.

Besides Castro, the roster included Reps. Tim Ryan of Ohio and Eric Swalwell of California – who are moving towards launching campaigns, and former Massachusetts Gov. Bill Weld, who’s taking steps towards launching a Republican primary challenge against GOP President Donald Trump.

Talcott said that former Congressman John Delaney of Maryland, who declared his candidacy back in the summer of 2017, is next up.

Talcott told Seacoast Media Group that the students are the real draw for the candidates.

He added that “I don’t really pitch anything” to the campaigns other than that students will take part in the conversations with the candidates.

Talcott’s message to the students is “not only do they matter, they're essential.”