The Honorable Dick Marple, from Hooksett, passed away suddenly on December 13. Rep. Marple was a dedicated public servant for decades who spent his time in Concord fighting for liberty and preservation of the Constitution. Thank you to the Marple family and Dick himself who spent so much time fighting for you and I.
Hooksett Town Council has voted, and the Executive Council has approved, a special election for his now vacant seat. That special election takes shape now that the filing period has closed.
There will be 3 candidates on the GOP ballot, and only 1 on the Democrat ballot come January 21 for the primary.
GOP Candidates:
- Elliot Axelman
- David Ross
- John Leavitt
Dem Candidate:
- Kathleen Martins
Mrs. Martins will move on to the General election on March 10th unchallenged, barring a strong write-in candidate.
The three GOP candidates have only 24 days to earn support from Hooksett voters for what will likely be a very low-turnout event. The primary, to be held on January 21, is the day after a long weekend. Only God knows what the weather will be like that day, in late January, in New Hampshire.
Elliot Axelman and David Ross have not run for State Representative before, but both have or are serving the Town of Hooksett on municipal boards. Ross was a Town Councilor, and Axelman is a Budget Committee Member.
John Leavitt is Honorable John Leavitt, having served in the New Hampshire House from 2017-2018. He lost in the GOP Primary in September 2018 to newcomer Michael Yakubovich. Hon. Leavitt’s voting record shows he was absent for 43 Roll Call Votes in 2018, over 50%. In 2017 he was absent for 19 out of 47, or 41%.
Of the votes Hon. Leavitt did make, he voted “correctly” (according to the New Hampshire Liberty Alliance) only 75% of the time. Solid C. One of the incorrect votes was against your Second Amendment rights to keep and bear arms. He voted to kill a bill that would have ‘allowed’ law-abiding gun owners to carry firearms on college campuses owned by the State of New Hampshire.
The New Hampshire Liberty Alliance has announced an endorsement for Elliot Axelman in this race. His website is Axelman4NH.com and you can donate to his campaign here. Websites or donation platforms could not be located for Ross or Leavitt.
***Note: This author is the Fiscal Agent for the Elliot Axelman campaign.***
