Latest News

NEWS

Aug 20, 2018

NHDP Reaction to UNH Poll: 20 months of Sununu in office, 73 percent of voters are still undecided

Concord, N.H. - A new UNH poll released today shows that after nearly 20 months of Governor Sununu in office, 73 percent of voters are still undecided in this year’s gubernatorial election. Collectively, in matchups against Democratic gubernatorial candidates, support of Sununu has dropped below 50 percent, and both Democratic candidates have seen an increase in support across the state. NHDP Chairman Ray Buckley issued the following statement: “Governor Sununu’s unfavorabili

Jul 25, 2018

Sununu's ineffective leadership sinks Wayfair bill

Concord, N.H. - Today, Governor Sununu's special legislative session proved useless after the State House stripped his bill designed to mitigate the fallout from the recent Wayfair v. South Dakota Supreme Court decision, and the Senate voted to kill the legislation. This is just one of many instances where Sununu has failed to implement his legislative agenda, despite having Republican majorities in the State House and State Senate. In the past year, his school voucher bill

Jul 13, 2018

BREAKING: Sununu breaks promise to thousands of Granite Staters, signs second voter suppression bill

Concord, N.H. - Governor Sununu just signed his second voter suppression bill into law, HB 1264. His support and signature of the bill today marks a drastic change from his opinion on the legislation last December when he told a UNH student he "hates" the bill, "hopes the legislature kills it," and that he "will never do anything to suppress the student vote." Sununu also passed the voter suppression bill, SB 3 last year. It is currently being challenged in court. HB 1264 fu

Jul 12, 2018

Sununu must keep his word and veto the voter suppression bill HB 1264

Concord, N.H. - Today, the New Hampshire Supreme Court issued an advisory opinion on HB 1264, voting 3-2 that the legislation is constitutional. Governor Sununu has evolved significantly since this bill and its twin HB 372 were first introduced. Last December, Sununu was caught on camera saying he "hates" the bill and that he "will never do anything to suppress the student vote." He then spent months moderating his stance saying he didn't like it in "its current form," to sa

Jun 26, 2018

NHDP Statement on SCOTUS declaring Trump's travel ban constitutional

Today, the United States Supreme Court ruled in a 5-4 decision that President Trump's travel ban that disproportionately targeted Muslims was constitutional. The deciding vote was cast by Supreme Court Justice Neil Gorsuch, who was installed on the Court with former Senator Kelly Ayotte's help and only after Republicans took unprecedented steps to block President Obama's nominee Merrick Garland. Last year, Governor Sununu reacted to Trump's travel ban saying "I definitely do

Jun 21, 2018

NHGOP support for Supreme Court obstruction backfires in online sales tax decision

Concord N.H. - Following the 5-4 Supreme Court decision allowing states to require online retailers to collect sales taxes, NHDP Chairman Ray Buckley issued the following statement: "The Supreme Court's decision on online sales taxes is devastating news for businesses and consumers in New Hampshire, and it comes courtesy of Justice Neil Gorsuch and the NHGOP's complicity in the historic obstruction campaign that put him on the court. With Chris Sununu and the NHGOP's support

May 21, 2018

ICYMI: Seacoast Online: Principal: I give Gov. Sununu an 'F' on student safety

Concord, N.H. - In Somersworth High School Principal John Shea's letter to Seacoast Online, he gave Governor Sununu an "F" on student safety. Sununu has failed to act to implement common sense gun control in the wake of Parkland and Santa Fe, instead saying he was happy with New Hampshire's gun laws "as is" (some of the most relaxed gun laws in the country). In an interview with NHPR, Sununu defended AR-15s, supported the idea that students should be able to carry guns on cam

May 18, 2018

ICYMI: Sununu tries to take credit for yet another Hassan economic accomplishment

Concord, N.H. - Yesterday, Governor Sununu claimed credit for Revision Military's decision to move to New Hampshire. The only problem: Revision Military has had its eye on New Hampshire since 2015, when they engaged in a dialogue with then-Governor Hassan. NHDP Chair Ray Buckley issued the following statement: "With no business recruitment accomplishments of his own, Governor Sununu is trying to take credit for Maggie Hassan's. The governor's not-so-transparent initiative to

May 17, 2018

ICYMI: Sununu had his day with the press. And it didn't go well...

Concord, N.H. - In a press availability on Wednesday, Governor Sununu touched on a wide range of issues, continuously putting his foot in his mouth during a tough stretch in his governorship. Just last week, Sununu's top legislative priority failed for a third time at the hand of his own party, capping a legislative session that saw defeat after defeat for a governor whose party controls every governing body in the state. Sununu then attended a closed-door NHGOP convention at

May 16, 2018

Sununu betrays his word & eligible NH voters in biggest flip flop yet

Concord, N.H. - Today, Governor Sununu said he would find it "hard not to sign" HB 1264, a bill that would restrict voting rights for eligible Granite Staters by imposing a modern day poll tax. This comes after Sununu vocally opposed the bill back in December, saying "I hate it," "it would never hold up in a court" and "I will never support anything that suppresses the student vote. End of story." Ever since, the governor has been inching toward signing it, claiming to oppo

May 12, 2018

Sununu's NHGOP celebrates their backward priorities behind closed doors

Concord, N.H. - Sununu's NHGOP celebrates their backward priorities behind closed doors Today, the New Hampshire Republican Party held a closed-door convention, mirroring the erosion of press access the Trump's administration has sadly become famous for in the last year and a half. While Governor Sununu's NHGOP has chosen to keep their business -- the people's business -- a secret, their radical record & over-the-top rhetoric have made New Hampshire Republican priorities quit

May 10, 2018

Democrats continue to be the backbone that keeps Medicaid Expansion alive and well

Concord, N.H. - Today, the New Hampshire Senate voted 16-6 to concur on a 5-year reauthorization of Medicaid Expansion, a program that insures more than 50,000 Granite Staters and serves as a key tool to fight the opioid crisis. Every present Senate Democrat voted yes, with 6 of 13 Senate Republicans voting against the bipartisan proposal. NHDP Chair Ray Buckley issued the following statement: "Democrats continue to be the backbone that keeps Medicaid Expansion alive and we

May 10, 2018

Third time is not a charm, Republican-led House AGAIN kills school vouchers, Sununu's top priority

Concord, N.H. - Today, the Republican-led House voted to non-concur and kill HB 1636, the zombie school voucher program that Governor Sununu and the Republican-led Senate snuck into an unrelated bill at the last minute. The program, originally titled SB 193, was rejected twice by the Republican-led House despite it being Sununu's top legislative priority of the session. A Reaching Higher NH study showed that the bill would have stolen $266 million from public schools. The bil

May 8, 2018

After Schneiderman resignation, where are NH Republicans on Trump?

Concord, N.H. - Today, Eric Schneiderman resigned his post as New York's Attorney General amidst allegations of sexual assault. Late Monday, Governor Andrew Cuomo called on Schneiderman to resign, begging the question: Why haven't New Hampshire Republicans condemned the president of their own party, Donald Trump, based on similar allegations of sexual assault and misconduct by 15 different women? NHDP Chair Ray Buckley issued the following statement: "How can New Hampshire

May 8, 2018

ANALYSIS: Sununu's new voucher bill will cost double the last one, taking $266M from public schools

Concord, N.H. - Yesterday evening, Reaching Higher NH released an analysis of the school voucher bill that was attached as a non-germane amendment to HB1636 by New Hampshire Senate Republicans late Thursday night. The analysis shows that the bill would take $266 million from New Hampshire public schools over the life of the legislation while giving an additional $53 million to current private school students. This is a drastic increase in spending, even compared to the bill

May 2, 2018

NH House kills school voucher bill in bipartisan rebuke of Gov. Sununu's key legislative priority

Concord, N.H. - Today, the New Hampshire House of Representatives voted 170-159 to take up the House Finance Committee's recommendation to send the school voucher bill, SB 193, to interim study. SB 193 would have unconstitutionally diverted millions of taxpayer dollars away from public schools to unregulated private, religious, and parochial schools. This bipartisan vote effectively kills Governor Sununu's biggest priority of the legislative session. Republicans hold a majori

Apr 26, 2018

Sununu derails paid family and medical leave, betraying working Granite Staters

Concord, N.H. - New Hampshire's chance to establish a paid family and medical leave program ended today after the Senate voted on party lines to send HB 628 to interim study, effectively killing the bill that sought to establish an opt-out paid family leave program of up to 6 weeks for employees HB 628 passed the House of Representatives three times with bipartisan support before Senate Republicans killed the initiative. HB 628 ultimately failed after Governor Sununu said he

Apr 17, 2018

Sununu lied about paid family leave support, did nothing to get to 'yes' & now promises veto

Concord, N.H. - Today, the Republican-controlled New Hampshire Senate Finance Committee voted to send HB 628, a bill to establish an opt-out paid family leave program of up to 6 weeks for employees, to interim study, effectively killing the legislation. During his campaign, Governor Sununu said he supported paid family leave, but just days ago, he said he would veto the current version of the legislation. NHDP Chair Ray Buckley issued the following statement: "Governor Sunu

Apr 17, 2018

NHDP Statement: Multi-millionaires Ivanka Trump & Steve Mnuchin try to sell unpopular GOP tax bill

Derry, N.H. - Ivanka Trump and Steve Mnuchin are in Derry, New Hampshire today for an official White House event that is closed to the public. The event aims to sell the Republican Tax Plan, which gives the vast majority of savings to corporations and the very wealthy, raises the deficit by $1.5 trillion, has resulted in record stock buybacks, and is estimated to raise taxes on most Americans within the next decade. The majority of Americans haven't seen a positive change in

Mar 22, 2018

ICYMI: Valley News rips Trump for tough talk while Shaheen and Hassan deliver results

Concord, N.H. - In a speech on Monday at Manchester Community College, President Trump outlined his approach to combat the opioid epidemic where he announced his support for several initiatives that have received bipartisan support before also requesting the death penalty apply to drug dealers. Since taking office, President Trump has refused to provide additional funding for the opioid crisis apart from the $57,000 that came with his long-delayed Public Health Emergency Dec