As NH GOP Senate Primary Gets Started, NH Leaders Discuss Extreme, Anti-Choice Records of Republican

Today, former Congresswoman Carol Shea-Porter, former Speaker of the NH House Terie Norelli, and NHDP Chair Ray Buckley hosted a virtual press conference where they discussed the extreme, anti-choice records of the NH Republican Senate candidates. This week, two anti-choice extremists — State Senate President Chuck Morse and Londonderry Town Manager Kevin Smith — joined Don Bolduc in New Hampshire’s chaotic and messy “bloodletting” Republican Senate primary. Morse, Smith, and Bolduc have extreme anti-choice records and would work with Mitch McConnell to repeal Roe v. Wade. Morse is the architect of the first abortion ban in modern New Hampshire history. Smith was a lobbyist and the leader of the anti-choice, far-right group Cornerstone Action, where he advocated for making abortion illegal in New Hampshire and defunding Planned Parenthood. Bolduc is also anti-choice and called for defunding Planned Parenthood. Read excerpts from the press conference below, and for the full recording of the press conference, please email press@nhdp.org: Former Congresswoman Carol Shea-Porter: “Chuck Morse, Kevin Smith, and Don Bolduc would gladly help McConnell repeal Roe v. Wade and wage war on reproductive rights across the country, because they’ve already waged their own war on reproductive rights here in New Hampshire. These Republicans have argued for stricter abortion bans, with no exceptions for rape or incest. They’ve demanded that we defund Planned Parenthood and other family planning organizations, threatening access to birth control, STD testing and treatment, cancer screenings and other important health care services for thousands of Granite Staters.” Former Speaker of the NH House Terie Norelli: “In New Hampshire, the Republican primary for the US Senate has officially started and there’s a group of extreme, anti-choice candidates jumping into the race this week and reminding us exactly what’s at stake for the future of reproductive rights. No matter who gets out of the primary, we know they will be an extreme, anti-choice candidate and will support Mitch McConnell’s relentless efforts to repeal Roe v. Wade.” NHDP Chair Ray Buckley: “In the Live Free or Die State, the Republicans are set to nominate candidates diametrically opposed to Granite State values. Don Bolduc, Chuck Morse, and Kevin Smith may have different names, but their election would spell the same thing: a Mitch McConnell-led majority in the Senate. With the Supreme Court poised to overturn Roe v. Wade, there could not be a more urgent time to stand up for reproductive freedom. Make no mistake, reproductive freedom is on the ballot in 2022, and the New Hampshire Democratic Party will hold every would-be Republican Senate candidate to account for their anti-women and anti-choice records.”