NASHUA, NH – On Monday, former New Hampshire Attorney General and U.S. Senator Kelly Ayotte announced her candidacy for Governor of New Hampshire.
Ayotte released the following statement.
I want to thank Governor Sununu and Valerie for their dedicated service to New Hampshire over the past seven years. Governor Sununu is an excellent leader who has worked hard to defend our Live Free or Die values and improve New Hampshire’s quality of life.
The battle to protect our Live Free or Die way of life must continue.
I’m running for Governor because New Hampshire is one election away from becoming Massachusetts – from becoming something we are not. I was born here and raised here. I raised my kids here, and you know what? I am going to die here because this state and it’s people are different. What we have here is worth fighting for.
Together, we will ensure that New Hampshire remains safe, prosperous, and free.
We will keep New Hampshire safe by standing up for our law enforcement officers, ending the revolving door of criminals returning to our streets, and by putting fentanyl dealers and violent criminals in jail. I did this work as Attorney General, and I look forward to partnering with law enforcement again.
We will protect and strengthen New Hampshire’s economic advantage by ensuring the Democrats never implement an income or sales tax, and by reducing energy costs and regulatory burdens on individuals and businesses.
I will stand with parents, not bureaucrats, when it comes to deciding what is best for our children. I will fight for universal education freedom because every child should have the same learning opportunities and chance at success, and we will work to recruit more great teachers to our state.
There is so much more work to be done and I will work tirelessly for and with the people of New
Hampshire to keep our state safe, prosperous, and free
She also listed the following endorsements.
Fmr. Governor Craig Benson
Rye
Fmr U.S. Senator and Ambassador Scott Brown
Rye
Executive Councilor Ted Gatsas
Manchester
Mayor George Hansel
Keene
House Majority Leader Jason Osborne
Auburn
Coos County Sheriff Brian Valerino
Berlin
Belknap County Sheriff Bill Wright
Belmont
Hills. County Commissioner Toni Pappas
Manchester
Hills. County Commissioner Robert Rowe
Amherst
State Senator Bill Gannon
Sandown
Gail Huff Brown
Rye
City Councilor Peter Morency
Berlin
Augusta Petrone
Dublin
Jay Lucas
Portsmouth
Mary Ann Gargiulo
Hampton Falls
State Rep. Mike Bordes
Laconia
State Rep. Ross Berry
Manchester
State Rep. Tom Dolan
Londonderry
State Rep. Margaret Drye
Plainfield
State Rep. Larry Gagne
Manchester
State Rep. Phyllis Katsakiores
Derry
State Rep. Dave Lundgren Londonderry
State Rep. Bob Lynn
Windham
State Rep. Mike Moffett
Loudon
Fmr. Grafton County Sheriff Doug Dutile
Haverhill
Fmr. State Rep. Dave Currier
Henniker
Fmr. State Rep. Kim Rice
Hudson
Fmr. State Rep. Cody Belanger
Epping
Fmr. State Rep. Brad Bailey
Monroe
Fmr. State Rep. Mike McCarthy
Nashua
Fmr. State Senator John Gallus
Berlin
Dick Anagnost
Bedford
Beverly Bruce
Dover
Andy Crews
Bedford
Michael Kane
Portsmouth
Matt Connors
Bedford
Anthony DiLorenzo
Portsmouth
Jeremy Hitchcock
Manchester
Eric Jostrom
Sugar Hill
Patrick Mills
Manchester
Raymond Pinard
Concord
Phil Taub
Bedford
Cindy Ahern
Plymouth
Lori Davis
Weare
Marilyn Huston
Keene
Jen Deml
Bedford
Donna Marzullo
Deering
Rick MacMillan
Dublin
Jason Pinault
Auburn
Tom Fleming
Goffstown
Retired Detective Bedford Police Sean Kilbreth
New Boston
Retired State Police Lt. Jerry Maslan
Charlestown
Retired Chief of Police Steve Pecora
Hopkinton
Captain Coos County Keith Roberge
Berlin
Retired Nashua Police Sergeant John Yurcak
Wilton
Retired Chief of Police Kyle Aspinwall
Mont Vernon
Retired Detective Bedford Police Matt Fleming
Dunbarton
Susan Callaghan
Rochester
Jonathan Nightingale
Manchester
Tom Puzzo
Derry
Jerry Sickles
Keene
Doug Thompson
Plaistow
Doug Griffin
Newton
Sean Knox
Concord
Brittany LeTourneau
Deerfield
David Mackey
New Boston
Doug Moorhead
Thornton
Jacqueline Pelletier
Hooksett
Gerry Reppucci
Nashua
Sheila Gagne
Manchester
Kristina Ickes
Candia
Peggy Gallus
Berlin
Ed Lecius
Merrimack
Chris Stawasz
Hollis
Roxanne Tufts-Keegan
Middleton
Fmr. Governor and U.S. Senator Judd Gregg
Rye
Fmr. NH First Lady Kathy Gregg
Rye
Tom Thomson, Owner of Thomson Family Tree Farm Orford
Mayor Paul Callaghan
Rochester
Hillsborough County Sheriff Chris Connelly
Mont Vernon
Sullivan County Sheriff John Simonds
Claremont
Hillsborough County Attorney John Coughlin
Amherst
Belknap County Commissioner Peter Spanos Laconia
Matt Mowers
Gilford
Honorable Kevin Smith
Londonderry
State Senator Carrie Gendreau
Littleton
Beth Varney
Alton
Town Selectman Bruce Breton
Windham
Town Councilor Barbara Healey
Merrimack
Karen Lucas
Portsmouth
Deputy House Majority Leader Fred Doucette Salem
State Rep. Bob Healey
Merrimack
State Rep. Katherine Prudhomme O’Brien
Derry
State Rep. Jess Edwards
Auburn
State Rep. Doug Thomas
Londonderry
State Rep. John Potucek
Derry
State Rep. Katelyn Kuttab
Windham
State Rep. Douglas Trottier
Belmont
State Rep. Jodi Nelson
Derry
State Rep. Peter Varney
Alton
Fmr. Grafton County Comm. Barbara Dutile
Haverhill
Fmr. State Rep. JP Marzullo
Deering
Fmr. State Rep. Vicki Schwaegler
Orford
Budget Committee Member Rob Varsalone
Chester
NH Fish and Game Commissioner Eric Stohl
Colebrook
Alex Choquette
Portsmouth
Tony Caparo III
Mont Vernon
Tracy Culberson
Pembroke
Neil Nicholson
Concord
Renee Plummer
Portsmouth
Daniel Plummer
Portsmouth
Henry Ahern
Plymouth
Kate Day
Chesterfield
Mike Castaldo
Dover
Frank Ferraro
North Hampton
Gail Ferraro
North Hampton
Linda Frawley
Belmont
Rita Mattson
Dublin
The announcement has received the following reactions. This list will be updated as new reactions become available.
New Hampshire Democratic Party Chair Ray Buckley
Kelly Ayotte is an anti-abortion extremist who would bring the destructive DC Republican style of politics to Concord. Ayotte was a loyal acolyte to Mitch McConnell always putting his agenda ahead of what was best for Granite Staters. She filibustered common sense gun reform in the wake of Sandy Hook. She led an unprecedented obstruction of judicial nominees. She opposed same sex marriage at a time when New Hampshire led the the way toward the right side of history. When she lost her last election so many years ago after a single term in the senate, she abandoned the Granite State in favor of multiple high paying corporate boards, only to return once she filled her now flush bank account.
“We have no doubt she’ll use her fat cat corporate pals to try and buy this election, and every confidence she will fail spectacularly. Granite Staters are looking for fresh, forward thinking leadership, and have zero interest in electing an anti-abortion extremist like Kelly Ayotte.
Kayla Montgomery, Vice President of Public Affairs for Planned Parenthood New Hampshire Action Fund
Kelly Ayotte may try to paint herself as pro-woman, but her record tells a very different story. In her last campaign, Ayotte promised to overturn Roe v. Wade; now that the U.S. Supreme Court has decimated federal protections for abortion rights, her extreme anti-abortion agenda is even more dangerous.
As N.H. Attorney General, Ayotte fought for an unconstitutional abortion restriction at the U.S. Supreme Court. As U.S. Senator, Ayotte voted to defund Planned Parenthood every chance she’s had and in 2011 she voted to eliminate the entire Title X Family Planning Program. In 2016, then-Senator Ayotte refused to consider Supreme Court nominee Merrick Garland, paving the way for Mitch McConnell and Donald Trump to steal a Supreme Court seat – the appointment which led to the overturning of Roe.
Let’s be clear – Kelly Ayotte’s anti-abortion position is out of touch with the majority of New Hampshire voters who believe abortion should be safe, legal, and accessible. The future of abortion rights in our state depends on every election; Granite Staters can’t count on Kelly Ayotte to protect our reproductive rights.
Joyce Craig for New Hampshire Spokesperson Craig Brown
The field of extreme MAGA Republicans seeking to strip away Granite Staters’ rights is growing – and a messy primary that pits extreme Republicans against extreme Republicans lies ahead.
Kelly Ayotte lost her re-election campaign to the U.S. Senate because instead of representing Granite Staters, she represented her corporate donors in Washington D.C.
Ayotte has spent the last six years profiting off her votes to defund Planned Parenthood and strip reproductive rights by taking high-paying corporate lobbying jobs. Granite Staters deserve a Governor who will fight for them, not serve the MAGA extremists and reward corporate special interests.
DGA Deputy Communications Director Izzi Levy
Kelly Ayotte has spent her career working to stack the deck against New Hampshire’s working families and attacking their most fundamental freedoms — even leading the charge for a national abortion ban — which is why New Hampshire voters retired her seven years ago after a single term in the Senate. With her announcement today, Ayotte joins a field of losing candidates that is all but assured to grow louder, messier, and more extreme, before Granite Staters reject her once more for a candidate who will actually work to defend reproductive freedom and fix the problems they face.”
New Hampshire is the only state in New England without proactive protections for reproductive freedom on the books, and Kelly Ayotte brings to this race a long record of attacking abortion rights: in 2010, Ayotte called for Roe v. Wade to be overturned, and in 2014, she led a group of 33 Republican senators demanding a vote on a national abortion ban. Ayotte also called a regulation requiring most employers to cover costs of birth control “an unprecedented affront to religious liberty,” and has voted at least five times to defund Planned Parenthood.
Ayotte joins former state Senate President and failed 2024 U.S. Senate candidate Chuck Morse, the architect of New Hampshire’s abortion ban who voted against adding exemptions for rape, incest, and the life of the child to the bill. Like Ayotte, Morse has also voted to defund Planned Parenthood, voted to allow pharmacists to refuse to prescribe patients birth control because of their own beliefs, and voted against a law that would protect patients from harassment while seeking reproductive health care.
As New Hampshire’s field of out-of-touch GOP extremists grows, top analysts have already shifted their ratings for NH-GOV from “solid R” and “likely R” to “toss up,” while Inside Elections notes this is the “best gubernatorial pickup opportunity” for Democrats in the 2024 cycle.
