Granite Staters will elect a new governor this year, and NHPR is speaking with the top candidates ahead of Election Day on Nov. 5.
Kelly Ayotte is a former US Senator and state attorney general, and she is running as the Republican nominee in the governor’s race. Read on for NHPR Morning Edition host Rick Ganley’s interview with Ayotte
What questions do you have for the candidates running for Congress and governor in the 2024 election? What issues do you want them to address while seeking your vote? Share your thoughts here.
Editor’s note: This interview has been lightly edited for clarity.
Transcript
You’ve said you'd follow the Sununu path as the next governor, but the next governor will likely face a more challenging financial picture than he did with a potential shortfall of hundreds of millions of dollars in the next state budget and far less federal aid coming in. What ideas do you have to make this next budget work?
I know that Governor Sununu has already started laying the groundwork for the upcoming budget, and he has asked each agency to put in 4% adjustment of their authorized 2026 budgets. That will still result in most agencies actually getting more money in 2026 and 2027 than they received in 2025.
But we're going to look all across the budget to make sure that we're serving people the best we can. We'll use technology to do things better. We'll make sure that we're prioritizing, addressing those that are most vulnerable, particularly our disabled community, as we think about the priorities within the budget. And I think obviously we'll have to live within our means and make sure that we come up with a bipartisan, balanced budget.
I know you've made clear that new taxes are not on the table. Are there other revenues that you're willing to entertain? I'm wondering what kind of programming cuts you would entertain if cuts do need to be made here?
Rick, we're going to continue to make sure that we can grow our economy. So we're not going to pass on new taxes, especially to families who are struggling with inflation right now. It costs a lot more at home, so we won't pass that along. And again, I think making sure that we have a strong economic climate, both for travel and tourism as well as for our business community, will help us get through challenging times and living within our means and looking for ways to do things better.
But do you see other revenues that you're willing to entertain? Other ways to raise revenue?
I don't because revenue means tax increases and I don't plan on passing new taxes on to the people of New Hampshire, especially during this challenging time.
One of the challenges to building this budget is the hundreds of claims the state is paying towards victims of alleged abuse at the state youth detention center. You were the attorney general when some of this alleged abuse happened. Are there structural changes that you would make to New Hampshire's child welfare system?
Rick, let me just make clear – obviously [I] didn't know about this happening at the time. I took the protection of children very seriously, including going after the Catholic Church with sex abuse there and other cases like that.
I think there are structural changes that need to be made. And I believe those structural changes in particular, are not only making sure that YDC is performing its function, that we have well trained staff there, that those who are at YDC in that situation – the new facility that's going to be put together at Hampstead – that they're treated as they should be: well. And then we give them an opportunity to rehabilitate.
But also DCYF needs substantial changes because we've had multiple examples of cases that should have been addressed were not addressed. And so that is an agency I want to separate out from Health and Human Services for more accountability.
I wanted to ask you about that because I know that you said, obviously, as attorney general, you did not know about these allegations as many others have. So it does come down to accountability, doesn't it, and transparency?
Of course it does. And we would have more accountability and transparency, I think, not only at YDC as we think about the Hampstead facility, but also I think in DCYF that's critical because protecting children is a top priority. And there have been several cases that unfortunately that system failed children.
Overdose deaths have been going down here in New Hampshire this year, but hundreds of people in New Hampshire are still losing their lives to drugs every year, as you know. As governor, what new ideas could you bring to address the effects of substance use?
First of all, I think that we need to be tougher on the actual fentanyl dealers, some of which are trafficking poison in from Lowell and Lawrence, involved in gangs in high level situations. And having talked to law enforcement as well as top DEA officials, having those tougher penalties will make sure that New Hampshire is in place [when] some of these high level dealers want to traffic their poison into our state.
But we also need to get help for those who are struggling with addiction. This is something that I worked on in the United States Senate. I led the Comprehensive Addiction and Recovery Act. It was two Republicans and two Democrats focusing on prevention, treatment and recovery. So making sure our Doorways program in New Hampshire is effective in helping those getting them into treatment.
And I also want to focus more on prevention in addition to treatment, getting that education out there, making sure that we're having those conversations earlier about the impact of opioids and other substances that that people unfortunately become addicted to.
Let me ask you about what some of those programs might look like. It's a different approach when you're talking about Manchester or Nashua, more urban areas of New Hampshire. I'm thinking about some more rural areas of the state, the North Country in particular. How do you get more effective programs out for rural residents of the state?
I had a chance to be in Berlin during the campaign and sit down with those who are working on that issue, both at the law enforcement end and also those working in the community. And there's no doubt at the rural level that we do need to make sure that there's access and providers in the area. So as we look across the state – Manchester and Nashua, the cities are important – having that access in those rural communities, and we'll be looking at that as we allocate state and federal resources to make sure that the rural communities are not left behind.
Could you give us a little more insight into what those programs might look like?
Yes, I think it's also making sure that we have the Doorways program covering the entire state, that you don't have to drive long distances to get that treatment. And that was a discussion that I had in Berlin, in particular, about an access point and needing more support there.
