Since the 2012 presidential election, no Democratic presidential hopeful has spent more time campaigning in New Hampshire than Sanders, who has spent 15 days in the state.

As Sanders begins to surge in early polls, one of his inherent advantages is that it takes him nearly no time or money to get to neighboring New Hampshire, the state that holds the nation’s first presidential primary. And once there, the voters, issues, and culture are not foreign to him.

CORNISH, N.H. — On Friday, Senator Bernie Sanders was at home in Vermont, where he spent the day on constituent work before turning in for a good night’s sleep. The next morning, he had no problem getting to New Hampshire for a 10:30 a.m. campaign event.


It’s paying off. Sanders trails Hillary RodhamClinton by just 8 points in New Hampshire, according to a University of New Hampshire poll last week. And everywhere Sanders goes there, he draws large crowds.

Sanders’ first campaign trip to the state, in April 2014, came about when his staff learned the conservative Koch brothers were funding an event in Manchester featuring several potential Republican presidential candidates. As a counterpoint, Sanders announced his own event in the same city on the same day. Getting him there was not difficult.

For some presidential candidates who already hold public office, spending time in New Hampshire can leave their constituents at home feeling underserved and neglected. A poll showed that 70 percent of New Jersey residents believed their governor, Chris Christie, should resign if he ran for president.

The geographical closeness of