Republican House members have nominated Representative Gene Chandler to be their candidate for Speaker.
New Hampshire Public Radio's Dan Gorenstein reports.
Republican House members have nominated Representative Gene Chandler to be their candidate for Speaker.
New Hampshire Public Radio's Dan Gorenstein reports.
Representative Gene Chandler considered this race for speaker the toughest contest he'd ever been in.
Chandler had to overcome ethics and campaign contribution scandals to gain yesterday's victory.
He has a reputation among his supporters as a man of integrity.
They say he would never put himself before the integrity of the House.
His critics say that's exactly what he did by announcing his candidacy for Speaker.
But in a press conference with reporters after the election, Chandler said people have told him to stand strong.
5:40 I've been getting a lot of phone calls. People haven't been shy about supporting me.
Republican House members certainly weren't shy about showing their support yesterday.
178 of 239 members voted for Chandler, that's about 75%.
That comes while both the Attorney General's Office and the Legislative Ethics Committee are investigating Chandler's fundraising activities.
Earlier this fall, Chandler admitted not reporting tens of thousands of dollars he received from his annual corn roast fundraiser for his personal use.
In the past four years, Chandler received about 64 thousand dollars.
Some of it came from political action committees.
Some came from lobbyists and corporations.
Still, despite the scandalt, many Republicans echoed the sentiments of Representative Shelia Francoeur.
:40 people that know Gene Chandler are taking the full weight of the man, the whole man, not some small charges that are out there. He has admitted making a mistake, everybody makes a mistake. we all know how he runs this house, what this house means to him, and more importantly, what the state of NH means to him...that's what people at this caucus voted for today, the true man.
Not all Republican representatives were as sympathetic.
Nearly 30 members voted with challenger Windham's Anthony DiFruscia.
DiFruscia essentially ran on a platform of reform, criticizing the role money has played in local politics.
After the caucus, supporters and opponents agreed DiFruscia spent more time attacking Chandler instead of making a case for himself.
Another group of Republicans preferred neither Chandler nor DiFruscia.
Many hoped an alternative would remove the cloud hanging over the statehouse as a result of Chandler's activities.
Representative Shawn Jasper led that charge.
Jasper was chair of the Legislative Ethics Committee investigating the Chandler affair.
He recused himself a few weeks ago because he felt certain that Chandler was guilty of ethics violations.
Jasper sees Chandler's victory as the arrogance of power.
2:23 people like and respect the speaker as I have. And I don't think they were at the point I was. I think they wanted to believe it was a simple mistake. and nothing more and saying sorry was enough.
Jasper added that he believes Chandler promised members committee assignments and various other perks in exchange for their support.
Chandler has strongly denied that claim.
But what Jasper says he really fears is that the overwhelming vote will influence the Ethics Committee and the AG's office.
The Ethics Committee is expected to meet this coming Monday.
Chandler told reporters that during his speech to the caucus, he told members that if there are changes in the development of either investigation, he will put the institution first, members second, and himself third.
2:40 if there is anything that would in any way hinder the workings or the reputation of the House or the goings on of it's members, I will certainly do the honorable thing.
Before he can become Speaker, Representative Chandler needs the support of the majority of the House.
But about 150 of those votes are Democrats who may be willing to vote against Chandler for political reasons.
That means the Speaker's opponents needs about 50 more votes to defeat him.
Whether there are enought Republicans who will vote against Chandler may largely depends on the outcome of either the Attorney Genera''s or the Ethics Committee's investigation.
The full House votes for Speaker on December 1st.
For NHPR News, I'm DG.
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