Incumbent city leaders had a good night Tuesday, as New Hampshire voters headed to the polls in municipal elections.
In Manchester, Mayor Jay Ruais held off challenger Jessica Spillers, receiving 59% of the vote.
Sitting mayors also held their seats in cities across the state, including Concord Mayor Byron Champlin, Keene Mayor Jay Kahn, Claremont Mayor Dale Girard, Somersworth Mayor Matt Gerding, and Portsmouth Mayor Deaglan McEachern. Berlin Mayor Robert Cone won running unopposed.
Several cities will see new leaders after Tuesday’s results.
In Laconia, Republican State Rep. Mike Bordes won a narrow race for mayor against Bruce Cheney, the city’s former police chief.
Democratic State Rep. Chuck Grassie was elected mayor in Rochester. And Dennis Shanahan won the mayor’s race in Dover.
There were a handful of upsets, as well. In Manchester, former chairman of the city’s Board of Aldermen, Joe Kelly Levasseur, was defeated in his race to win reelection to an at-large seat on the board.
Mixed results on 'social districts'
Several cities also voted Tuesday on whether to authorize “social districts,” where adults can purchase and consume alcohol in outdoor municipal spaces. A new state law allows communities to adopt a provision allowing those districts.
Concord and Laconia residents voted to allow social districts to operate in their cities. But the measure failed in Nashua, Keene and Portsmouth.
Concord voter Jim Knee said he voted to support the concept, which he'd only just heard of.
"I learned what a social district was, and I did look up all the candidates and I'm comfortable we've got a lot of good ones,” he said.
Voters in three cities were also asked to vote whether to bar Keno, a gambling game that raises money for the state. New Hampshire cities have since 2017 been asked to approve of Keno before operators can run the video lottery game in their community. But as part of the current state budget, lawmakers authorized the game statewide starting in 2027, though communities can still opt out until them.
Keene, Concord, and Portsmouth all voted to bar Keno Tuesday. The game is currently authorized in nine cities and 84 towns across the state.
New voter registration requirements
Tuesday’s was also the first municipal election where New Hampshire voters hoping to register at the polls were required to provide paperwork proving they are U.S. citizens — including a birth certificate, passport or naturalization papers — as well as the proof of residency requirements.
Aaron Losier, the moderator in Manchester's Ward 1, said relatively few voters were affected by the change, and those voters were patient.
"Everyone's been very understanding,” he said. “Everyone is able to get the documents they need and we've been able to assist them. We've been lucky."
The national immigration crackdown was top of mind for voters Yader and Carol Sampson in Manchester. Yader said he was a freedom fighter in Nicaragua, and Carol marched against authoritarian president Daniel Ortega. Yader says he turned out to elect local leaders who will support democracy.
“We cannot live in anything else than freedom,” he said.
NHPR's Lau Guzmán and Josh Rogers contributed reporting to this story.
