Gov. Sununu has been great on guns and the economy. But when he began advancing left-wing culture-war legislation, I made a prediction. He’d get re-elected in 2018, but the Republicans in the legislature might get wiped out. That happened.
But not just because of liberal legislation advanced by a Republican majority.
Jim McConnell, a former Republican Rep. from Cheshire County 12, who had a post in the Concord Monitor a while back, observed that based on,
“…Sununu’s performance in office, it is difficult to escape the conclusion that he understands almost nothing about political leadership and that, in any event, he simply doesn’t care.
I met Jim at a GOP meeting in Rindge recently. We talked about the Granite State political elite. The folks atop our swamp. The Sununu’s have been there a while. Chris is just the latest member of a powerful political family to ascend the throne. A position that affords access upward more so than down. From the monitor piece.
Consider, for example, the fact that Sununu had in excess of $1 million in campaign donations at the same time the New Hampshire Republican Party, whose chair he had appointed, was completely out of funds. Did it never occur to the governor that some of his contributors would be willing to support him by supporting the party he led?
Jeanie Forrester was a disaster but a result of how the NHGOP has done business here. The friends and family plan. A closely held corrupt corporation, to paraphrase someone I know and hold dear. An expression of the founder’s concerns about the nature of political parties who, created with the best of intentions, become “detrimental to the sovereignty of the people and the republic itself.
As Jim notes,
his efforts on behalf of his party’s most important candidates were unimpressive or, usually, non-existent. Many of our most important candidates lost by tiny margins. Had the governor evidenced the slightest interest the New Hampshire Senate might, for example, still be Republican.
We lost the NH Senate in 2018 by a few hundred votes in a few districts.
So, here’s the question. Is that still the case?
Earlier this year, the party elected Steve Stepanek and Pam Tucker to run the party. Stepanek and Tucker are engaged with local groups. And while there is some tension with GOP town committees, the state party seems focused on growing participation to get more boots on the ground in every town.
This past Tuesday, we had a special election in Epping. The Democrat, a former congressional chief of staff, opened a campaign office for a NH House seat. No one does that. But the Left wanted to make a statement. The Governor and the State party said, hell no. Their commitment was impressive.
YAL’s Win At The Door PAC have been hitting doors in Epping for months since the filing period for the special closed and they endorsed Vose. The NHGOP jumped right into action after the primary and has done doors every weekend since. They also hosted weekly phone banks with many of Governor Sununu’s employees making calls on their own time. All hands were needed to be on deck, and they were.
The next test comes in November with Manchester municipal elections. Republican Victoria Sullivan has challenged Democrat mayor Joyce Craig. Has the Governor put his weight behind Sullivan? Are the same troops going to get out the vote the way did in Epping? And then some? We’ll need the ‘and then some.’
The people who still doubt Sununu’s commitment to the party are watching. Is he invested in candidates and building momentum? Or is he just there because it was his turn? And what does that mean for 2020?
Update: An earlier version of this report incorrectly indicated the special election town as Exeter. It is Epping. This has been corrected.
