In my previous article, I discussed the earliest candidate slate members for the executive council seat being vacated by the retirement of Ted Gatsas. I elaborated on Ryan Terrell and have been asking some questions behind the scenes and even emailed Scanlan.
I received a prompt reply with a mention that one must have lived in NH for seven years and presently live in the district at the time of the election to be eligible for office representing it. Fair enough, but voters still deserve to know when he relocated from Nashua to Lee. I don’t want to stoop to the level of calling him a carpetbagger, as that’s what Jan Schmidt did to him, even though he moved to NH a long time ago as a New Orleans flood refugee. If he’s eligible for ballot access, then so be it, but let’s talk about another early entrant and address some other things worthy of attention.
Burns announced his candidacy yesterday after waffling for a very long time about Annie Kuster’s seat.
If you need a timeline, I’m sure Lily Tang Williams can answer questions that she had asked Burns herself. After losing her congressional primary, Lily called Burns to congratulate him, and most voters of the intelligent variety cast their vote for him in November. When he lost to Annie, Lily started planning her 2024 campaign to try again, which I encourage everyone to support, no matter who is on their ballot.
Though I didn’t keep a journal of the exact words said and on what date(s), I do remember Lily saying she reached out to both Burns and George Hansel(the Damn Emperor’s endorsee and late entrant) to tell them her plans and ask for their support. It’s been my understanding, subject to final confirmation with Lily, of course, that neither of them was quick to reply, and a commitment from either one of them was not obtained. I think of those anecdotal stories about the single person playing the field or the fair-weather friend who won’t lock into Friday night plans because…(drum roll) something better might come along.
It’s only fair that I question Burns’s interest, passion, and suitability for the position with the same fervor I questioned Ryan Terrell’s ties with the community Ted Gatsas represents. To either of them, a voter should ask some suggested questions:
Have you ever attended an executive council meeting?
If yes, how many times and when and why?(other than Ryan’s BoE nomination/confirmation process-related reasons)
Have you ever called or emailed Ted Gatsas?
If yes, when and why?
Have you ever asked him or any of his 4 peers to vote a certain way on something?
If yes, what was the nomination or agenda item?
Were you considering candidacy prior to learning of Ted Gatsas’s retirement?
One attribute of the human condition is the desire to stay relevant and some candidates and former candidates for many offices are known to be quite shameless in that pursuit. The intelligent voter will filter out all the opportunists and vote for Nurse Terese.
