O'Malley, stumping in N.H., sells himself as alternative to Clinton.

Attempting to push back on the idea that his presidential campaign is a nearly insurmountable long shot, Martin O'Malley arrived in New Hampshire on Sunday to sell himself as a fresh voice and progressive alternative to front-runner Hillary Clinton.

Visiting the key presidential primary state a day after announcing his long-expected candidacy in Baltimore, the former two-term Maryland governor used phrases like "new leadership" and "trying different things" almost immediately upon hitting the ground here — and it was a theme he repeatedly returned to throughout the day.

As he spoke with voters at a diner, addressed a small house party and delivered pizza to Dartmouth College students on the eve of their finals, O'Malley engaged in exactly the kind of retail politicking analysts say he needs to perfect in order to climb out of the single-digits in polls.

"I've always been drawn to the toughest of fights," O'Malley told a group gathered in Gilford, N.H., recounting his first run for mayor in 1999.

"The people I've met in New Hampshire refuse to be intimidated by big money, pundits, or the concentration of power [and] insisted on meeting every candidate, looking them in the eye, asking them questions and making up their own mind," he said. . .

"I don't think Hillary's a lock," said Peter Morin, a 55-year-old Manchester resident after speaking briefly with O'Malley. "I don't like to see anyone anointed." . .

To distance himself from Sanders, he notes he hasn't "just talked about" liberal ideals, but has achieved them.

http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/maryland/martin-omalley/bs-md-omalley-new-hampshire-20150531-story.html