Nevada’s recent announcement that it will push back its presidential caucus to Feb. 4 averts an early December primary in the Granite State.

Nevada had originally pegged its primary for Jan. 14. New Hampshire state law requires that its primary be held at least seven days prior to any similar contest except Iowa’s caucus, which is scheduled for Jan. 3. That would have left Jan. 7 open for New Hampshire, but Secretary of State Bill Gardner said he did not want to wedge the primary so closely between the caucuses in Iowa and Nevada. New Hampshire is now expected to take its preferred primary date of Tuesday, Jan. 10.

As happened in 2008, a shuffling of primaries to earlier dates began when Florida announced it would violate national party rules and schedule its contest for Jan. 31 (party rules stipulate only New Hampshire, Iowa, South Carolina and Nevada can hold their elections before March 6). South Carolina responded by scheduling its own primary for Jan. 21. Nevada then proposed a Jan. 14 caucus, spurring Gardner to warn that New Hampshire might push its primary date all the way up to Dec. 6 or 13.

State Democrats and Republicans pressured Nevada to push back its caucus, and members of the Republican National Committee supported their efforts. State Republican Committee chair Wayne MacDonald thanked RNC chair Reince Priebus and others for working toward an agreeable resolution.

“The New Hampshire primary is important not just as a long standing tradition, but as an opportunity for lesser-funded or lesser-known candidates to have the opportunity to be heard,” MacDonald said in a statement.