A former state Republican Party chairman says this week’s election results do not bode well for his party in 2018.
Speaking on NHPR's Morning Edition, Fergus Cullen said a Democrat wave may have contributed to Manchester Mayor Ted Gatsas losing re-election to Joyce Craig.
“Everyone knows that these elections are technically non-partisan, but at the same time everyone knows that Ted Gatsas was the Republican and Joyce Craig was the Democrat,” Cullen says. “And to the extent there was a Trump effect in the race, look, Trump has been a get-out-the-vote machine for Democrats this past year since he got elected.”
Cullen points out that Republicans lost eight out of 10 special elections for the Legislature this year. “These are Republican areas where the Republican candidates are getting drilled in the off year,” he says. “Then, the Ted Gatsas election in Manchester. I have concerns about how 2018 is shaping up from a Republican perspective.”
In Manchester, even past mayors who were popular have met electoral defeat, as Cullen notes.
And even with Democrats winning eight special elections, their party is still very much in the minority at the Statehouse. In a statement after the election, state GOP Chairwoman Jeanie Forrester thanked Gatsas for his service, while expressing confidence in the Republican leadership in Concord, including Gov. Chris Sununu.
