John Kerry and Howard Dean were battling their way to the finish line in the New Hampshire primary tonight as voters helped choose who would challenge George Bush for the presidency.

Voting began today in the New Hampshire Primary, with the stakes high for the Democratic candidates hoping to run for the White House later this year.

DEMOCRATIC presidential candidates opened their sprint to the New Hampshire primary yesterday with newly minted front-runner John Kerry pitching his experience and John Edwards laying claim to electricity in a contest thrown wide open by the leadoff Iowa caucuses.

THE front-runner among nine Democrats vying to challenge George Bush in next year’s US presidential election had a major boost yesterday when he was backed by Al Gore.

George Bush plans to spend a record €186m on his re-election campaign which will be launched near the third anniversary of the September 11 attacks, it was reported today.

Senator Joe Lieberman has said he will run for US president in 2004, telling pupils and parents at his old school that he will always "put America first".

THE Democratic Party has been left without a clear candidate to challenge George W Bush for the White House in 2004, after former US Vice President Al Gore's surprise decision not to run.

Former US Secretary of State Henry Kissinger has stepped down as chairman of a panel investigating the September 11 terrorist attacks on New York and Washington, citing controversy over potential conflicts of interest with his private-sector clients.