Eddie Edwards lost to Chris Pappas in the 2018 mid-term congressional election. It was the first race in a long while in NH CD-1, where we didn’t have a Guinta or a Shea-Porter from which to choose. But as January approaches Edwards has not signaled a public interest in a do-over.
Related: Why Steve Negron is Poised to Set GOP Turnout Record for NH CD-2 in Nov. 2020
That concerns me.
Could CD-1 become like CD-2, which for the better part of a decade has had the same Democrat running against a different Republican? Well, that’s finally changed. Steve Negron is pursuing a rematch with Ann Kuster (a seat she admits he could win), and it is good to see we’ve ended the NHCD2 one-and-done curse (at least for the moment). It’s hard enough to get name recognition if you’ve never run in the general, especially in that district.
But what of CD-1?
The drought has ended on the Republican side. Three names have popped in the past few days of both potential and likely Republican candidates to challenge Pajamaboy Pappas. And they are all named Matt.
Matt Mayberry says he is in, but will not formally announce until January.
We’ve learned the first Republican to say he intends to do so is former Dover city councilor and school board member, U.S. Air Force veteran and longtime GOP leader Matt Mayberry. …
Mayberry made it clear he’s not a candidate, yet, but he said he plans to make it official within the next month to six weeks.
Matt Mowers says he is on board, but according to WMUR has not committed to any formal announcement date.
New Hampshire Primary Source has learned that Matt Mowers — a former Trump administration State Department official, former New Hampshire Republican Party executive director and former aide and top campaign strategist for former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie — has been urged to run by Republicans both locally and in Washington.
We’ve covered Matt and Matt, and not always with joy in our hearts. Both (of these) Matt’s have GOP state committee tenure tarnished by the stain of Jen Horn. But we like them both and will give them plenty of opportunities to express their vision.
The third candidate is Matt Burrill. This Matt is relatively unknown. He lives in Newton, New Hampshire. Burrill says he is a businessman, lawyer, and for the past few years has served as a Selectman in Newton. That means he has a record on local issues, which would prove quite valuable to grasp the things he says matter.
He’s running to put New Hampshire first but also believes in fiscal responsibility, securing our borders, and protecting our constitutional rights.
Good issues if you are not just talking the talk.
The current economic and political circumstances are leaning toward a Trump win in New Hampshire. Both Congressional seats could be flipped from Blue to Red. We also have a shot at retiring Democrat Jeanne Shaheen.
But to do that, we will need a lot of people to get involved in driving turnout for Republicans who use the time we give them in congress, not to overturn a presidential election but to address the points Matt (Burrill) brings up. A few of those “few things” Congress is there to do.
Secure the nation, address the debt and spending issues, and protect our constitutional right. It sounds easy enough, but no Democrat in New Hampshire is remotely capable of any of that. It is time to replace them with Republicans who will. We just need a few who will do more than say it to get votes.
[update] the original version of this article excluded Matt Mayberry’s announcement that he intends to run. I have updated the text and republished it with those important details added with my apologies to Matt.
