The stakes just got higher in New Hampshire, where Bernie Sanders is showing serious strength. As the early Iowa caucus results started rolling in, call-and-answer chants of “Hari Har” and “Shakti Devi” filled a dimly lit yoga studio in the tiny New Hampshire town of Keene more than a thousand miles away. To the beat of drums, cymbals and an acoustic guitar, 15 people gathered to chant and “send our positive intentions out to the world,” as the organizer described the event. Their stated goal? To perform Kirtan hymns (and some old-fashioned outreach) in the hopes of great voter turnout for the presidential election. But despite that nondenominational nod, almost everyone here had a more specific hope: that Sen. Bernie Sanders could soon be their Democratic nominee for president. But as the night moved on, there was no clear response to their prayers, as severe problems with the Iowa Democratic Party’s reporting process led to massive delays in releasing caucus results. The debate threatens to overshadow whoever will eventually be declared the winner — particularly as the news cycle moves on to President Donald Trump’s State of the Union address and expected impeachment acquittal — as the candidates crowd into New Hampshire starting today. |