Photo

LONDONDERRY, N.H. — Donald J. Trump’s version of a town hall event throughout most of the campaign has been to have audience members shout questions at one of his mega-rallies. Traditional town hall events, which voters in the early states have historically demanded of candidates, have been few and far between.

As it turns out, it’s not because he isn’t capable of doing well at them. For roughly an hour on Monday, Mr. Trump addressed a town hall event of about 200 people in Londonderry, a town southeast of Manchester. It was a traditional setup, with people in folding chairs in a square. Mr. Trump stood in the center, never taking off his overcoat, using a hand-held microphone. He gave a condensed version of his stump speech, keeping his tone level, just as he had at two earlier small events, one in Salem and one in Manchester. He talked about immigration and trade, two key issues for the state’s voters.

And, after seeming unusually flat and in weak form on Sunday, Mr. Trump suddenly appeared energetic. But he also showed an empathetic side, connecting with the crowd, even handling a contentious question about a donation from controversial supporters.

He took a question from a man who held aloft a framed photo of a son who had died of a drug overdose.

“You’re not a politician,” the man said. “You’re a public servant.” Mr. Trump, whose late brother was an alcoholic, listened, nodding and murmuring understanding words.

At another point, a woman who had been a flight attendant on one of the plane routes involved in the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, described her continuing fear and anger. Mr. Trump said that it was O.K. to be angry, but that he would make people happy again.

Early on, a woman demanded to know whether he would return the donation a white nationalist had made to his campaign. Mr. Trump said he didn’t know about it. The woman disagreed and pushed on. Certainly he would return it, Mr. Trump said, pausing for a moment before saying, “Don’t be so angry.” The crowd laughed.

Several in the crowd seemed pleased by the chance to be so close to Mr. Trump.

As he left the event in Londonderry, Tom Lovely, a retiree, said he was considering four candidates: Mr. Trump and the three current or former governors in the race, John Kasich, Chris Christie and Jeb Bush. “The top executive position should have a seasoned executive at its head,” he said.

Of the town hall format, Mr. Lovely said, “This is real retail politics, the way it’s supposed to be, where you get the town hall, where you get to hear what they have to say, and then ask them questions, right up close.”

If Mr. Trump loses New Hampshire or only wins narrowly, the town hall and his events throughout the final day will hover as a question mark as to why, even as he tried to preserve his political identity as an outsider, he didn’t do more of these types of events, and earlier.