Mitt Romney’s presidential campaign came full circle at a late-night rally on Monday in New Hampshire, the state that kickstarted his bid for the Republican nomination.

But nostalgia is not the only reason Romney visited New Hampshire on his last day of campaigning. The state’s four electoral college votes could prove crucial in getting Romney to 270 electoral votes, the number needed to take the presidency.

At the rally at the Verizon Wireless Arena in Manchester, N.H., Romney promised that America was “one day away from the first day of a new beginning” and that his plans would ensure America “comes roaring back.”

The event was billed as the “Final Victory Rally” with a concert by Kid Rock, who performs Romney’s “Born Free” anthem, which plays at the beginning of all of the candidate's rallies as he takes the stage. The arena was packed with more than 10,000 people.

“This is a special moment for Ann and for me because this is where our campaign began,” Romney said. “You got this campaign started a year and a half ago at the Scamman farm. And then your primary vote put me on the path to win the Republican nomination. And tomorrow your votes and your work right here in New Hampshire will help me become the next President of the United States!”

That same night, voting began in the tiny town of Dixville Notch, N.H., which is always one of two locations that gets to cast the first votes of the presidential election just after midnight on Election Day. The other location, also in New Hampshire, is Hart's Location.

In a possible harbinger of the closeness of Tuesday’s race, the 10 Dixville Notch voters were evenly split: five votes for Romney and five votes for President Obama. It was the first time in Dixville Notch's history that a tie was recorded.

A new poll released Monday indicates the incumbent president has a razor-thin margin in the state over Romney, who once served as the governor of neighboring Massachusetts.

Fifty-percent of likely voters say they support Obama, while 45% say they back Romney, according to the WMUR-University of New Hampshire poll. Four percent are undecided, and one percent say they prefer another candidate.

The new poll shows a narrower gap between the two candidates than a separate WMUR poll released last week, which showed Romney and Obama tied at 48%. Other recent polls have indicated the president holds a slim margin over his opponent, while an American Research Group survey released late last month showed Romney ahead by two percentage points.

Romney offered a fierce critique of Obama’s policies at the rally – arguing that Americans have a choice between two paths on Election Day.

“Paul Ryan and I will limit government instead of limiting the dreams of our fellow Americans,” Romney said. “If the president were to be reelected, he still won’t be able to work with the people in Congress, of course, because he's ignoring them, he’s attacked them, he’s blamed them. The debt ceiling will come up again. And then there’ll be a threat of shutdown or a default.  And if that happens, the economy will become frozen. We’ll have a harder time having jobs. “

"The president was right when he said he can’t change Washington from the inside, only from the outside,” Romney said. “Let’s give him that chance!”

Read more of Neon Tommy's coverage of the 2012 Presidential Election.

Reach reporter Tricia Tongco here and follow her on Twitter.