Presidential candidate John Kasich couldn't have picked a better time to rise in the polls in New Hampshire, where voters will cast their ballots in less than three weeks.



After spending months in the middle of the pack, Kasich is now on top of a crowded field of moderate Republicans who know they can’t beat Donald Trump Donald John TrumpHR McMaster says president's policy to withdraw troops from Afghanistan is 'unwise' Cast of 'Parks and Rec' reunite for virtual town hall to address Wisconsin voters Biden says Trump should step down over coronavirus response MORE but who believe a strong second place finish will propel them in states that follow the first-in-the nation primary.

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“The separation between [Kasich] and other [establishment candidates] is more important than the separation than between [Kasich] and Trump,” Dean Spiliotes, a Civic Scholar at Southern New Hampshire University and founder of the political blog, NHPoliticalCapital.com.



“He doesn’t have to win, but he has got to be a strong second.”



The Feb. 9 primaries in New Hampshire are critical for the establishment candidates because of the state’s more moderate electorate but also because they can be a springboard in a GOP race that could last several months.



They come eight days after the Feb.1 caucuses in Iowa, where Trump and Sen. Ted Cruz Rafael (Ted) Edward CruzLoeffler calls for hearing in wake of Netflix's 'Cuties' Health care in the crosshairs with new Trump Supreme Court list 'Parks and Rec' cast members hosting special reunion to raise money for Wisconsin Democrats MORE (Texas) are favorites, and weeks before South Carolina and Nevada.



A second-place showing for Kasich was not even on the table until earlier this month, when the Ohio governor broke double-digit support in the RealClearPolitics index of New Hampshire polls for the first time since late September.



Then, this week, after mostly languishing between fourth and seventh place for several months, Kasich passed the higher-profile Sens. Marco Rubio Marco Antonio RubioFlorida senators pushing to keep Daylight Savings Time during pandemic Hillicon Valley: DOJ indicts Chinese, Malaysian hackers accused of targeting over 100 organizations | GOP senators raise concerns over Oracle-TikTok deal | QAnon awareness jumps in new poll Intelligence chief says Congress will get some in-person election security briefings MORE (Fla.) and Cruz, reaching second place in the RealClearPolitics index.



Still, in a crowded where five candidates are in a bottleneck for the moderate establishment vote, just 5.2 points separates Kasich, Cruz, New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, Rubio and former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush.



Kasich’s recent rise comes on the back of a string of high-profile endorsements from local activists and powerhouses, including former Sen. John Sununu (R), former chair of the state Republican Party Fergus Cullen and local activist Ruth Griffin, a longtime family friend of the Bushes who chaired George W. Bush's successful steering committee there in 2000.



He has adopted a more optimistic message that he hopes will stand out from the doom-and-gloom campaign rhetoric offered by other candidates and has leaned on his experience in Congress while his rivals try to shed any establishment connection.



Rivals have increasingly identified the 63-year-old as a potential spoiler in the state, pushing back on his self-described “prince of light and hope” message. Christie instead likened Kasich to “Satan,” while the pro-Bush Right to Rise began airing a Jeopardy-themed spot Thursday focused on ObamaCare, defense cuts and spending.



Some strategists are skeptical of how long Kasich can stay in the race if he doesn’t have a strong second-place finish in New Hampshire. And even if he did have that kind of showing, it’s unclear how it would translate into momentum in other states where voters are traditionally more conservative.



Kasich's rise has been accompanied by a message that could see cross-over voting. Ryan Williams, a veteran of Mitt Romney's campaign and a Bush backer, said that he believes Kasich is openly pursuing independents by "staking out some liberal positions."



"He's gone about as far left as any Republican running in the field," Williams said, pointing to Kasich's recent remarks about it not being realistic to lower individual taxes as an example.



Kasich touting his record in Congress seems calculated at attracting undeclared voters, who can vote for candidates in either party in the New Hampshire primaries and have warmed in polling to himself and Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders Bernie SandersMcConnell accuses Democrats of sowing division by 'downplaying progress' on election security The Hill's Campaign Report: Arizona shifts towards Biden | Biden prepares for drive-in town hall | New Biden ad targets Latino voters Why Democrats must confront extreme left wing incitement to violence MORE (I-Vt.).



"It's ironic but true: he is competing with Sanders for independent voters," Williams said of Kasich.



Fergus Cullen, the former chair of the New Hampshire Republican Party who endorsed Kasich this week, didn’t think the governor’s success would necessarily come at the expense of Rubio, Bush or Christie.



“One of the mainstream conservatives will assert themselves as the candidate who mainstream conservatives and donors can rally around,” Cullen said in an interview with The Hill. And while Cullen hopes Kasich will be that candidate, he said it’s realistic to think any of the four main establishment hopefuls could emerge as the party favorite.



He pointed to Cruz as an example of a candidate he believes doesn’t have staying power in the general election – Cruz has been battling with Trump and Rubio for the support of the party's base, but has kept his sights on the primary compared with a potential matchup against Hillary Clinton Hillary Diane Rodham ClintonHillicon Valley: FBI chief says Russia is trying to interfere in election to undermine Biden | Treasury Dept. sanctions Iranian government-backed hackers The Hill's Campaign Report: Arizona shifts towards Biden | Biden prepares for drive-in town hall | New Biden ad targets Latino voters FBI chief says Russia is trying to interfere in election to undermine Biden MORE or Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), the Democrats.