US:Barack Obama has made a dazzling debut in New Hampshire, fuelling speculation that he will declare next month that he is joining the race to become the Democratic presidential candidate in 2008.
More than 2,500 people turned out to see the Illinois senator at two events, a book-signing in Portsmouth and a $25 a ticket Democratic election victory party in Manchester.
"We originally scheduled the Rolling Stones, but we cancelled them when we figured out that senator Obama would sell more tickets," New Hampshire governor John Lynch told Democratic supporters.
As the state that holds the first presidential primary in 2008, New Hampshire will receive dozens of visits from candidates of both parties during the next year.
Mr Obama's first visit on Sunday generated an unprecedented level of excitement, however, as voters came to view the man who is emerging as Hillary Rodham Clinton's strongest rival for the Democratic nomination for 2008.
"It's flattering to get a lot of attention, although I must say it is baffling.
"I think to some extent I've become a shorthand or symbol or stand-in for a spirit that the last election in New Hampshire represented.
"It's a spirit that says we are looking for something different, we want something new," Mr Obama said.
New Hampshire Democrats had their most successful election in a century last month, unseating two Republican congressmen, winning control of the state legislature for the first time since 1874 and retaining the state governorship.
Mr Obama said he is still consulting advisers and his wife Michelle about whether to run for president but he is expected to make a decision next month.
Ms Clinton, who is expected to announce next month that she is running for president, hosted a dinner for New Hampshire activists at her home in Washington on Sunday.
Mr Obama's emergence as a rival to Ms Clinton is reflected in his team's unofficial motto "Don't tell Mama, I'm for Obama", a reference to the New York senator's nickname when she was First Lady.
Although media attention has focused on Mr Obama as an alternative to Ms Clinton, his entry into the race could prove more damaging to other Democrats who are preparing to join the presidential race.
These include former vice-presidential candidate John Edwards, senators Joe Biden, Chris Dodd and Evan Bayh and New Mexico governor Bill Richardson.
Mr Obama and Ms Clinton are political stars of such dimensions that they could crowd out other candidates as the Democratic race becomes a struggle between two titans.
On the Republican side, John McCain remains the front-runner, although former New York mayor Rudy Giuliani is more popular among the US public and former House speaker Newt Gingrich is preparing to join the race.
Social conservatives are considering a number of contenders, including the outgoing Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney and the Kansas senator Sam Brownback.