Clinton is now hoping to shave his New Hampshire lead and regain some momentum going into friendlier territory later this month in Nevada and South Carolina.
Their debate showdown, scheduled at the last minute, is the first without Democratic challenger Martin O’Malley, the former Maryland governor who dropped out after a disastrous showing in Iowa.
Clinton, 68, acknowledges she faces an uphill battle in winning over the younger vote, which polls show identifies strongly with Sanders’ poverty-busting agenda and free tuition at public colleges.
The more moderate Clinton is about incremental change: slow but steady reforms on Wall Street, tweaks to Obama’s Affordable Care Act and expanding university scholarships.
An NBC, Wall Street Journal, Marist poll released hours before the debate gave Sanders 58 percent support among likely Democratic primary voters in New Hampshire and Clinton 38 percent.
Sanders leads the former first lady among voters aged 18-29 by 76 to 24 percent, the poll found.
Republicans are also swarming to New Hampshire for the crucial February 9 vote, with Donald Trump eager to reclaim the lead after he was beaten in Iowa by arch-conservative Senator Ted Cruz.
The billionaire New York real estate tycoon also faces the sudden, dramatic rise of Senator Marco Rubio, who is gaining traction among mainstream Republican voters.
On the Republican side, Trump is firmly ahead in New Hampshire, with the telegenic Rubio moving into second place ahead of Cruz, according to the latest University of Massachusetts/Lowell poll.
About The Author
