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Manchester, N.H. - Tonight, Joyce Craig won the non-partisan Manchester mayoral primary, becoming the first woman to do so in the history of the city, which was founded in 1751. Craig won by a margin of 5,800-4,987 (53%-46%), besting the incumbent Republican Mayor Ted Gatsas. In Manchester's primary format, the top two primary vote-getters regardless of party advance to the general election. Since Manchester switched to non-partisan primaries in 1997, no incumbent mayor has ever finished in second place. Craig and Gatsas will face off in the general election on November 7th. Gatsa lost his home ward by 16 points and lost 10 of Manchester's 12 wards. Before tonight, Gatsas had never lost a mayoral primary since he first ran in 2009. Gatsas had also never been out-raised in a primary or general election, but in the 2017 primary, Craig raised $308,152 to Gatsas's $270,815. In 2015, Craig finished first among Democrats and second overall in a contested primary field. She fell short the Manchester mayoral general election by just 64 votes. NHDP Chair Ray Buckley issued the following statement: "Tonight's victory is a loud rejection of Ted Gatsas, whose mismanagement has left the city worse than when he took office. Instead of focusing on solving Manchester's most pressing issues, Gatsas has been distracted by problems of his own creation. The people who know Gatsas best rejected him in his home ward by a double-digit margin. Voters sent a clear message that they want a fresh approach to politics. Joyce Craig has the energy and vision to take on the city's challenges, and her historic victory tonight puts us one step closer to that change. If tonight is any indication of things to come in 2018, Governor Sununu and Republicans across the state should be very worried."
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