Republicans slam Healey over NH race
‘Granite Staters don’t want Healey picking their next Governor’
Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey may have lived in New Hampshire as a child but she isn’t running for office there, though you might think she was considering all the attention she’s getting as the state’s gubernatorial election carries on.
Healey’s name has frequently been on the lips of former U.S. Sen. Kelly Ayotte as she runs to replace outgoing Gov. Chris Sununu. The former senator has used Healey as foil in her race against former Manchester Mayor Joyce Craig, contrasting the policies of liberal Massachusetts with her own conservative politics.
On Monday, the Republican Governors Association released a statement ostensibly concerning the race for New Hampshire but directed at the Bay State’s chief executive.
“Massachusetts Governor Maura Healey seems determined to infiltrate New Hampshire with her failed policy ideas — continuing to put her finger on the scale in the New Hampshire Governor’s race,” the association said in an emailed statement, without citing any instances of Healey’s thumb on the scale of Granite State politics (though she did endorse Craig last year).
According to Ayotte, Healey’s political stylings simply would not work in New Hampshire, and if elected Craig would mirror her Massachusetts counterpart.
“I firmly believe that New Hampshire is the best place in the country to live, work, and raise a family. What got us here is our safe communities, prosperous economic policies, and our commitment to protecting freedom — all of which are in stark contrast to the path Massachusetts has chosen, and which my opponents would also choose. As Governor, I will work every day to ensure New Hampshire remains safe, prosperous and free for the next generation,” Ayotte said in a statement shared with the Herald.
Courtney Alexander, RGA National Press Secretary, took it a bit further, saying Healey’s agenda during her short time in office “has been a disaster for Massachusetts.”
“And it would be a disaster for New Hampshire, too. Granite Staters don’t want Healey picking their next Governor, and they certainly don’t want a Governor made in her image,” she said.
Craig’s campaign said that Ayotte’s claims about her plans for New Hampshire are at odds with her positions. The former senator claims to stand for freedom, they say, but she is against a woman’s right to choose whether or not to get an abortion.
Choosing to focus on Healey is a sign that Ayotte’s team is worried about running against Manchester’s former mayor.
“Kelly Ayotte and her extreme national Republican allies are determined to make this race about Massachusetts because Ayotte does not have solutions for the biggest challenges facing New Hampshire. Joyce Craig is committed to investing in affordable housing, strengthening our public schools, protecting reproductive freedom, and creating opportunities for hardworking Granite Staters to succeed,” Craig Brown, Joyce Craig for New Hampshire campaign manager, told the Herald.
Healey’s office did not return a request for comment.