Concord – Secretary of State William Gardner said yesterday the date of the first-in-the-nation New Hampshire primary will remain uncertain regardless of action taken in Iowa last night. He reiterated in an interview that a mid-December primary is not out of the question.

The Iowa Republican Central Committee last night voted to hold its leadoff caucus on Jan. 3. Prior to the Iowa meeting, Gardner told the New Hampshire Union Leader that the decision by the Iowa GOP would be one small piece of a puzzle that will eventually lead him to set the date of the New Hampshire primary at least seven days ahead of any "similar election," in keeping with state law, and in a way that preserves the long tradition of the primary. New Hampshire has held the nation's first primary since 1920.

Gardner said there are too many variables remaining in other states -- especially Michigan, Nevada and South Carolina -- to draw any primary date conclusions from last night's Iowa GOP vote.

Gardner confirmed he participated in a conference call with Iowa Secretary of State Michael Mauro and the chairmen of the Iowa Republican and Democratic parties last week.

"I told them nothing that I haven't already said," he said. "I told them what the (New Hampshire) law is and that we are faced with the possibility that we could go in December. It was simply an explanation of where New Hampshire is at this point." He said it was "absolutely not" a negotiating session.

Speculation about a December primary has been rampant since Sept. 28, when Gardner moved the filing date up three weeks from the recent past cycles to a time frame that will allow the absentee ballots to be mailed out and returned in time for a Dec. 11 primary. Primary protection law author Rep. Jim Splaine, D-Portsmouth, last week wrote an op-ed proposing a December primary, which intensified the speculation, especially in the national media.

"I have not made any decision on (December or January). I made that clear," Gardner said yesterday.

Gardner reiterated what he has told the New Hampshire Union Leader several times. He would prefer to schedule the primary for early January, "but something might happen that may change the circumstances, and under those circumstances, if (holding the primary in December) is the best thing for us to do, it's the thing we'll have to do."

Gardner has said that under the current scenario, the primary cannot be held later than Jan. 8 because Michigan has scheduled a primary for Jan. 15. But Michigan is far from settled, Gardner noted.

Four Democrats have withdrawn from the ballot there, but since Republicans continue to campaign there, Michigan remains a "similar election" under the New Hampshire law, he said.

The Michigan parties have until Nov. 14 to opt out of the Jan. 15 date, and, Gardner noted, Michigan Democrats have publicly floated more possible developments, including forcing the candidates back onto the ballot through legislation.

Gardner noted that the political parties in Nevada are considering moving their caucuses from Jan. 19 to Jan. 12, while South Carolina Democrats voted last night to ask the Democratic National Committee to move up their primary from Jan. 29 to Jan. 26, a week after South Carolina Republicans' Jan. 19 event.

Splaine, in a separate interview yesterday, continued to advocate a December New Hampshire primary and said he was preparing another op-ed.

"I think it's a reasonable possibility," he said of December. "Once you look at January and how it's shaping up, New Hampshire doesn't have many options if we're going to avoid the crunch, the squash."

Splaine said Gardner "has to keep the December option open, and I think it's reasonable. But I'm not speaking for him.

"Personally," said Splaine, "I'd want to make sure that (Gardner) guarantees that the primary is not only first but relevant, and right now, we're only going to be a footnote if we're in that squash effect."

Gardner said last night's Iowa votes simply mean that "Iowa Republicans have decided that their own law is not going to be applicable, and that's it. I don't read anything more into it."

Iowa law requires the caucus to be held at least eight days ahead of any other presidential nominating contest, but Iowa GOP spokesman Mary Tiffany noted that, unlike New Hampshire, "At the end of the day, it's historically been that the state parties can determine when they have their caucuses."

Tiffany said Iowa GOP officials want to set a date now because "we're very different from New Hampshire. We have a lot of organizing that must be done. It's a huge undertaking."

Iowa Democrats for now are sticking with a Jan. 14 date set by the Democratic National Committee, but that may soon change to either Jan. 5 or 8 -- possibly even December.

►Politico.com: N.H. inches toward December primary
►Des Moines Register: Iowa GOP to caucus Jan. 3, with or without Democrats