Sen. Bernie Sanders was projected to win the New Hampshire Democratic primary on Tuesday night with 26% of the vote as of 11 p.m. ET.

Sanders has long had strong support in New Hampshire, which neighbors his home state of Vermont, and he dominated the state’s 2016 primary with 60% of the vote to Hillary Clinton’s 38%.

With Sanders neck and neck with former Mayor Pete Buttigieg in Iowa, he’s emerged from the nation’s first two 2020 contests as the new frontrunner.

Visit Business Insider’s homepage for more stories.

Sen. Bernie Sanders was projected to win the New Hampshire Democratic primary on Tuesday night with 26% of the vote as of 11 p.m. ET.

He was followed by former Mayor Pete Buttigieg with about 24% of the vote and Sen. Amy Klobuchar with 20% of the vote.

Both former Vice President Joe Biden and Sen. Elizabeth Warren fell short of the 15% support threshold needed to win delegates.

Polling in the days leading up to the primary showed Sanders leading Buttigieg by anywhere from 1 to 7 percentage points. But Buttigieg gained on Sanders in the weeks before the primary, cutting into Biden’s support.

Sanders has long had strong support in New Hampshire, which neighbors his home state of Vermont, and he dominated the state’s 2016 primary with 60% of the vote to Hillary Clinton’s 38%.

A CNN/UNH poll conducted last week showed Sanders with a commanding lead among self-described liberal primary voters and primary voters under the age of 35. Buttigieg was in the lead with primary voters who described themselves as moderate or conservative and those over the age of 65.

Lees ook op Business Insider Kabinet: Nederland zit in tweede coronagolf – horeca in zes risicogebieden vanaf 1 uur ’s nachts dicht

But the CNN poll also found that almost half of New Hampshire voters hadn’t made up their mind on whom they’d vote for just days before the primary.

Buttigieg and Sanders remain neck and neck in the chaotic Iowa caucuses, where recanvassing is taking place.

Foto: Sanders with former Mayor Pete Buttigieg of South Bend, Indiana, and former Vice President Joe Biden before Friday night’s Democratic presidential debate in Manchester, New Hampshire.sourceElise Amendola / Associated Press

The New Hampshire primary accounts for just 24 pledged delegates, 0.6% of the total, but it often signals the end of some candidates’ campaigns.

Sanders’ win Tuesday gives him early momentum in the race and has lifted him to frontrunner status, as he simultaneously took the lead for the first time in a national Quinnipiac poll on Monday.

Candidates’ attacks on one another escalated sharply in the days between the Iowa caucuses and the New Hampshire primary.

At a Democratic debate in Manchester, New Hampshire, on Friday night, several candidates, including Warren and Klobuchar, took pointed shots at Buttigieg, accusing the former mayor of being compromised by donations from billionaires, lacking experience for the job of president, and not owning up to his record on race relations as mayor of South Bend, Indiana.

Biden released an ad Saturday mocking Buttigieg’s record as mayor and comparing Biden’s accomplishments in the Senate and in the Obama White House with the Midwesterner’s local achievements. The former vice president has repeatedly warned that nominating Sanders would alienate moderates and independents who are repelled by the senator’s democratic socialism.