Journal photo / Gretchen Ertl
John Edwards campaign volunteer Maggie Thornton, 21 of Shawsville, Va., cheers for the Democratic candidate after he thanked volunteers at his Manchester primary campaign headquarters today. But the end result will be up to the voters of New Hampshire.

Partisans worked feverishly to turn out the vote in New Hampshire's epic primary today. Then doors closed behind ordinary people, and it was up to Sylvia Gale in Nashua, Mary McGinty in Hudson, Kevin Kandel in Derry and countless others to decide.

Gale said she was voting for Democrat Barack Obama, the Illinois senator.

"Because he has the consistency and the passion and the leadership ability that I believe will bring in the changes that are necessary in this country," McGinty said. "And he didn't support the war in Iraq."

After voting in the Hudson Community Center, McGinty said she supported Democrat and New York Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton.

"I loved Bill Clinton when he was president and she has him behind her," said McGinty.

Kandel, voting in Derry, cast his vote for Republican and former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney. An independent, Kandel said his choice came down to Romney or Obama.

Kandel, a 38-year-old music teacher, said he voted for President Bush both times because he was worried about security. This time around, he said he was really looking for someone who would break the partisan gridlock in Washington. He said he likes that Obama has not been in Washington long enough to become part of the system and that Romney ran a state and is not a creature of Washington.

Kandel said he also thinks Romney's business background would be good to inject some business ideas into government.

-- projo.com staff writer Michael P. McKinney, from reports by Journal staff writer Scott Mackay, who is covering the campaign trail