MANCHESTER, N.H. -- Arizona Republican Sen. John McCain usually doesn't emulate Democratic former President Bill Clinton.

But, after several strong weeks, Mr. McCain is hoping to resurrect his presidential hopes Jan. 8 as the "comeback kid" of the New Hampshire primary, just as Mr. Clinton did here 16 years ago.

"I said this strategy would work," Mr. McCain told those who had crowded into a school auditorium last night to hear him, speaking of his approval of President Bush's decision to commit nearly 30,000 additional troops to Iraq this year. "People said, 'McCain is finished.' Well, I'd rather lose a campaign than lose a war."

Despite poor fund raising, his outspoken support for the Iraq war and clashes with the GOP base over his immigration stance, Mr. McCain, who won New Hampshire's 2000 Republican primary, hasn't yet lost this campaign. On the contrary, he's proving himself to be a major competitor.

According to a Washington Post-ABC News poll released yesterday, 20 percent of likely Republican New Hampshire primary voters said they supported Mr. McCain. That puts him 17 points behind former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, but it also puts him ahead of all other GOP candidates, including former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani.

On Sunday, he won the backing of New Hampshire's largest newspaper, the Union Leader, which ran a front-page editorial headlined, "John McCain is the man to lead America."

The paper's endorsement doesn't have the same potency it once had, because of television and the Internet. Still, it will help Mr. McCain boost his support among conservatives, said Andrew E. Smith, an associate professor of political science at the University of New Hampshire in Durham. "People have written him off," Mr. Smith said. "But I think he's in good shape."

Mr. McCain is reusing his playbook from 2000: He's bypassing the Iowa caucuses and staking his political future on the New Hampshire primary, where moderate Republicans and independents play a larger role and often support candidates who don't follow party orthodoxy.

Mike Dennehy, who ran the New Hampshire campaign eight years ago and is now Mr. McCain's national political director, said that approach is starting to show results on the ground, with bigger crowds and a growing group of volunteers. "The enthusiasm is much better," he said. "It's similar to what we saw in 2000."

Mr. Dennehy predicted that even a strong second-place finish next month could propel Mr. McCain to greater successes. Yet it may not be enough to help him compete with the large campaign treasuries of Mr. Giuliani and Mr. Romney as the presidential contests move quickly to expensive media markets.

And Mr. Romney's lead in New Hampshire is still formidable.

"When it comes down to the issues that are important to New Hampshire voters, Gov. Romney's message is resonating," said Craig Stevens, a spokesman for the Romney campaign.

A top issue is immigration, and Mr. Romney has been very critical of Mr. McCain's role in creating legislation that would have given millions of illegal immigrants a path to citizenship.

Ed Lee, 66, of Manchester, agrees with Mr. Romney's position, but he is still supporting Mr. McCain, just as he did in 2000, because of the senator's consistency in the face of intense opposition. "I think it goes back to the fact that he's said the same thing," Mr. Lee, a tax collector for the state, said before Mr. McCain's appearance last night. "It's hard knowing what the others stand for."

Mr. McCain's most vocal stance has been his backing of President Bush's "surge" of troops in Iraq, which has coincided with a significant drop in violence there. The number of U.S. combat deaths last month was at its lowest since March 2006.

Yesterday, Mr. McCain didn't predict a quick conclusion to the war.

"It's going to be very expensive, and it's going to be very long and hard and difficult. The only thing I can say to you is that I am convinced that if we do not prevail there, they will follow us home," he said of terrorist groups. "I believe that will cost us additional billions of dollars and American lives."

Several hundred people turned out to hear Mr. McCain speak, although even the candidate admitted that many were there to see one of his most prominent local supporters, Curt Schilling of the Boston Red Sox. (The star pitcher introduced Mr. McCain as "the next president of the United States," and predicted another World Series win for his team next year.)

"I don't know if he's going to be a viable candidate," said Jim Parker, 50, a high school teacher who voted for Mr. McCain in 2000 and came out to see if the senator is still a contender. "If it looks like he's viable, I'll support him."