Jon Huntsman wagers big in New Hampshire

Jon Huntsman appears ready to bet his entire 2012 bid on winning New Hampshire's crucial first-in-the-nation primary.

Per the Associated Press's Steve Peoples, the former Utah governor is assembling what may be the most extensive GOP primary push in the state's history in hopes of upsetting frontrunner Mitt Romney's nomination bid.

Huntsman already has 21 paid staffers in the state—more than three times the number other 2012 hopefuls, including Romney, have on their payroll. The campaign, which opened its state headquarters in Manchester earlier this month, plans to open three or four offices throughout the state in coming weeks.

The ramp-up comes as Huntsman makes his sixth visit to the state this week and just days after a major campaign staff shake-up.

Just a month after he announced his bid for the 2012 nomination, Suzie Wiles, a high profile Florida political operative, resigned last week as Huntsman's campaign manager. She was replaced by Matt David, Huntsman's communications director who had previously worked for John McCain's 2008 presidential bid.

Huntsman, a moderate Republican who resigned as President Obama's ambassador to China in April, has struggled to gain momentum in the early 2012 race. He's barely registered in many early GOP nomination polls, polling at 1 percent in many national polls. In New Hampshire, Huntsman had just 2 percent support among likely GOP primary voters in a recent WMUR Granite State poll.

The former governor had launched his campaign in June amid promises of running a different kind of campaign that would embrace civility rather than attacks in political discourse. But as Huntsman aims to gain traction in the race, aides have hinted in recent days he'll get adopt a more aggressive tone on the campaign trail.