If he schedules the primary in December, ahead of Iowa’s caucus, he could unilaterally alter the the entire nature of the campaign, giving an advantage to Mitt Romney, the former governor of neighboring Massachusetts, who’s remained far ahead in local polls. In a three-page statement released Wednesday afternoon, the New Hampshire secretary of state reiterated his independence and said he’ll move the primary up as far as necessary to maintain first-in-the-nation status and comply with state law. Every operative that I’ve talked to said it’s the worst thing that could have happened.” 
 
 A lot hinges on Gardner’s decision, which took on new importance after Florida moved its primary to Jan. 31 and South Carolina and Nevada moved up their dates in response. Ultimately, Nevada last week announced its caucus would be Jan. 14, eliminating Jan. 10 from Gardner’s potential options because New Hampshire law requires the primary be held at least seven days before any “similar election.” 
 
 “We were hoping to get a specific date out of them but that didn’t happen,” Tarkanian said.
– New Hampshire may be forced to hold its GOP primary as early as Dec. 6, and it will be all Nevada's fault for moving up its caucus date, the Granite State's top election official warns. Secretary of State William Gardner says New Hampshire has no intention of surrendering its tradition of being the second state to choose a nominee, and the combination of state laws and the Christmas holiday make Dec. 6 or 13 the only realistic dates for a primary if Nevada refuses to move its date back by at least three days, Politico reports. Iowa's caucus is set for Jan. 3, and Nevada's is schedule for Jan. 14. The parties "can discourage other states from trying to leapfrog onto our tradition," Gardner said in a statement. "Right now, the problem is the date of Nevada. We cannot allow the political process to squeeze us into a date that wedges us by just a few days between two major caucus states." Mitt Romney is expected to win in both New Hampshire and Nevada, but an early December win in New England will leave a long time, and probably a big loss in Iowa, between victories, notes Nate Silver at the New York Times.