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Primary results show extremism has taken over Granite State GOP

By BETTE LASKY - Guest Columnist | Oct 8, 2022

Now that New Hampshire’s primaries are over and our general election slate is in concrete, one thing is abundantly clear – New Hampshire Republicans are in a race to the right. Up and down the ballot, Republicans’ chaotic primaries ended with extreme, anti-choice, out-of-touch nominees winning over candidates favored by Chris Sununu, and it shows just how extreme the state Republican party has become.

The nomination of extremists Don Bolduc, Karoline Leavitt, and Bob Burns is disappointing, to say the least. The far-right positions these candidates support range from wanting to ban abortion nationally, attacking our voting rights, pushing debunked conspiracy theories about election fraud, and decimating Social Security and Medicare. These are against some of our core Granite State values, and yet the nominees for the New Hampshire Republican Party openly stand in opposition to these sacred values.

Though over 70% of Granite Staters identify as pro-choice, these candidates have all put their support behind national abortion restrictions and increased restrictions right here in New Hampshire. They’re laser-focused on restricting New Hampshire women’s right to choose, and they don’t care how out-of-touch their actions are with the average voter.

All three of these candidates lauded the reversal of Roe v. Wade and laughed in the faces of the terrified women who had lost their right to safe, legal abortion.

Don Bolduc famously said that women just need to “get over it.” This is not at all surprising to hear from the man who complained that Chris Sununu’s abortion ban wasn’t restrictive enough, or who said he would vote for any anti-choice legislation.

Meanwhile, Karoline Leavitt has said that Sununu’s abortion ban was a great first step, but that we need to go further. She talks about her passion to “end abortion” and proudly professes “I am a pro-life Republican and I will always vote that way when I get to Congress.” She has raked in endorsements from some of the most extreme, anti-choice candidates you can imagine.

On abortion, Bob Burns proposed government-run abortion death panels to decide whether or not a woman whose life is at risk due to pregnancy should be allowed an abortion or be forced to die. He supports a national abortion ban with no exceptions for rape, incest, or to protect the health of the mother. His ideal ban would take away the right to choose before most women even know that they’re pregnant.

On top of that, all three candidates are all still loyal to former President Trump and have already pledged their support for him in a 2024 run. Granite Staters have made our opposition to Trump and the MAGA agenda crystal clear, and yet New Hampshire Republicans are still risking it all to push his extremism and to attack our democracy.

They have touted Trump’s Big Lie and have repeatedly tried to instill distrust in our fair and free elections to serve their political agendas. If elected, they would all continue to push this harmful narrative and use their positions to threaten our democracy.

These three nominees show the vast distance between where we are today and the days of a moderate Republican party. New Hampshire Republicans have chosen the three most far-right extremists that have been on the ballot in living memory. They could not be more out of touch with what Granite Staters want, and yet, this is who the NH GOP has chosen to represent them.

Meanwhile, our federal delegation is delivering for Granite Staters. The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, CHIPS and Science Act, American Rescue Plan, and Inflation Reduction Act are lowering costs and helping grow our economy. Senator Maggie Hassan, Congresswoman Kuster, and Congressman Pappas were crucial in getting these laws passed, and they fought tooth and nail to deliver for Granite Staters. Their Republican opponents would’ve blocked these key pieces of legislation.

Granite State voters know just how extreme and out-of-touch Don Bolduc, Karoline Leavitt, and Bob Burns are. This November, we need to elect strong leaders who represent our Granite State values, who will fight to lower costs, and stand up for our rights and freedoms. This November, we need to re-elect Sen. Maggie Hassan, U.S. Rep. Annie Kuster, and U.S. Rep. Chris Pappas.

Bette Lasky is a former State Senator from Nashua and the second vice chair of the New Hampshire Democratic Party.