How We Got Here: Key Moments From The '96 Campaign

January

January: With the first-in-the-nation New Hampshire primary six weeks away, Kansas Sen. Bob Dole already is the man to beat. He leads in the polls and his forces work hard on the ground, led by New Hampshire Gov. Steve Merrill. The race is for the number two spot, and a strong enough showing to cast doubt on Dole's electability.

Jan. 13: The other early hot spot is Iowa, where caucuses are set for Feb. 12. In a debate at Johnston, Iowa, nine GOP hopefuls assail millionaire publisher Steve Forbes Jr. and aim jibes at front-runner Dole. Former Tennessee Gov. Lamar Alexander tells Dole to step aside. "We need to say with respect to Senator Dole, it may be your turn but it's not your revolution," Alexander says. "It's not your time. It's time to move on."

February

Feb. 2: Bill Clinton steals some of the Republicans thunder with his own campaign visit to the Granite State. His second-place finish there in 1992 earned him the label the "Comeback Kid." The same day, in a foreshadowing of trouble to come, we learned Clinton was angry with his political strategist, Dick Morris, for sharing private polling data with Dole.

Feb. 6: Louisiana crashes the party by scheduling an early caucus. Most of the GOP field skips it, to avoid angering supporters in New Hampshire and Iowa. Louisiana becomes a battle between conservative commentator Pat Buchanan and Texas Sen. Phil Gramm, and Buchanan wins handily, 67-33 percent. It's an early and soon fatal blow for Gramm.

Feb. 12: The Iowa caucuses are the first real test of the entire field. Dole wins, but he is followed closely by Buchanan and Alexander. Forbes finishes fourth despite big TV ad buys and Gramm stumbles to a fifth-place finish. In the eyes of a skeptical press corps, Dole looks like "a fragile front-runner." Related Links: Iowa Special Report and the numbers.

Feb. 14: Dole unveils the first of many new strategies when, following in Buchanan's footsteps, he attacks corporate greed in a speech in New Hampshire. Buchanan happily takes credit for the front-runner's new theme. "How can my views be too extreme when Bob Dole is echoing me on every issue?" he asks. Gramm drops out. Related Link: Sounds of Feb. 15 N.H. GOP Debate

Feb. 20: Buchanan stuns Dole with a narrow win in the New Hampshire primary. "It's a two-man race from now on, and we know that we're now engaged in a fight for the heart and soul of the Republican Party," Dole said. But more significant, in the long run, was Dole's decision to attack Alexander with a series of negative TV ads. It stopped an Alexander surge in the polls that could have resulted in a No. 2 finish for the former Tennessee governor, who constantly recited his ABCs: Alexander Beats Clinton. Related Links: New Hampshire Special Report, the numbers and The Digital Journalist: Eight Days of N.H. Sights and Sounds by TIME's Dirck Halstead.

Feb. 24:Forbes wins the Delaware primary, but against no real competiton: Dole, Buchanan, and Alexander had stayed away in order not to offend New Hampshire and concentrated instead on Arizona's Feb. 27 contest.

Feb. 27: Forbes wins the Arizona primary, and the race looks more muddled than ever. Supporters chant "Go, Steve, go," as the publisher notes how the news media wrote him off after New Hampshire. "Now, tonight, we can perhaps write the obituary of conventional political punditry in America," Forbes says. Halfway across the country, Dole captures the Dakotas and accuses Forbes of trying to buy the nomination with $4 million in Arizona ad buys. Related Links: The Arizona numbers, the Dakotas numbers and the Arizona Special Report.