'New Hampshire' Episode 3: How The Heroin Crisis Is Bleeding Into The Primary

MANCHESTER, N.H. -- A heroin epidemic has taken a ruinous hold around the country in communities large and small, rich and poor.

It’s often referred to as a crisis. Here in New Hampshire's largest city, however, it’s more like a calamity.

One of the best arguments for maintaining the state’s privileged first-in-the-nation status on the presidential primary calendar is that since the electorate here is so small, the candidates are compelled to really find out what’s on voters’ minds in face-to-face settings. If it weren’t for that direct interaction, the heroin issue may never have gained the visibility it has in the 2016 race.

In the third episode of "New Hampshire," a HuffPost Originals limited series, we’ll meet some of the recovering addicts, family members and first responders who have been affected most directly by the heroin epidemic in a state and a city that has been ravaged by it.

We’ll also see a particularly emotional side to several of the candidates who have been affected directly by drug addiction.

Watch Episode 3, "How The Heroin Crisis Is Bleeding Into The Primary," above, and for more episodes and bonus clips, check out the "New Hampshire" show page here.