Politics
Bill proposed by Merrimack teen would require eating disorder hotline on student ID cards
By EILEEN O’GRADY
One year after the Jason Dickey Act placed the Suicide Prevention Lifeline phone number on student identification cards around the state, legislators are considering another bill that would add an eating disorder hotline as an additional...
On the trail: Sununu joins potential 2024 rivals at GOP donor confab in Texas
By PAUL STEINHAUSER
Gov. Chris Sununu joined a handful of other actual or likely 2024 Republican presidential contenders Friday at a conference in Texas that’s attracting some of the top donors in the GOP.New Hampshire’s four-term Republican governor will speak and...
Voting after the fact: Executive councilor defends practice
By ANNMARIE TIMMINS
Republican Executive Councilor David Wheeler has made his votes against funding for family planning and sex education well known at council meetings. But for years, he’s made other potentially controversial votes quietly by taking no position during...
On the trail: Nikki Haley packs them in at NH town halls
By PAUL STEINHAUSER
As she aims to win the 2024 Republican presidential nomination over her old boss – former President Donald Trump – Nikki Haley has a message for Granite State Republicans.The former two-term South Carolina governor and America’s first female governor...
Pay hikes, school funding, licensing reform highlight Sununu budget address
By ANNMARIE TIMMINS and ETHAN DeWITT
Gov. Chris Sununu has big plans for the state’s $330 million surplus and what he predicts will be ongoing strong tax revenue. He gave lawmakers a budget Tuesday that would give schools an additional $200 million a year and state employees a 10 percent...
Bill proposes support for childcare for both parents and providers
By MICHAELA TOWFIGHI
On any given day at the Waypoint Children’s Place and Education Center, Kelly Bozetarnik wears many different hats. Her formal role is the director. But most days at the child care center off of Loudon Road, she is a director, a teacher, an assistant...
NH House kills bill to collect race and ethnicity data during police stops
By JAMIE L. COSTA
State representatives voted down a bill that would have allowed New Hampshire law enforcement to regularly collect demographic data from people stopped and arrested in the state.House Bill 597 would have given residents the option to put their race...
Haley joins GOP race for White House
By MEG KINNARD
CHARLESTON, S.C. — Nikki Haley, the former South Carolina governor and United Nations ambassador, announced her candidacy for president on Tuesday, becoming the first major challenger to former President Donald Trump for the 2024 Republican...
New Hampshire House votes to delay youth center closure
By HOLLY RAMER
The New Hampshire House dealt a blow Tuesday to efforts to quickly close and replace the state’s troubled youth detention center.The Senate passed a bill last month that would require construction of a new 12-18 bed facility to be put out to bid by...
Ex-governor, UN ambassador will become first Republican to enter race against Trump
By MEG KINNARD and STEVE PEOPLES
CHARLESTON, S.C. — Few have navigated the turbulent politics of the Trump era like Nikki Haley.In early 2016, the then-South Carolina governor said she was “embarrassed” by candidate Donald Trump and decried his reluctance to condemn white...
On the trail: Gov. Sununu takes a concrete step toward running for president
By PAUL STEINHAUSER
Gov. Chris Sununu has been saying for weeks that he’s “having conversations” and “definitely thinking about” a run for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination.As those conversations continue during a four-day swing through the nation’s capital,...
Bipartisanship elusive in minimum-wage debate
By RICK GREEN
There has been much talk about the need for bipartisanship in this year’s closely divided N.H. Legislature, but when it comes to the hourly minimum wage, a clear partisan division was front and center on Tuesday.Democratic lawmakers argued for an...
Bill requiring single-sex school bathrooms divides parents, students
By ETHAN DEWITT
New Hampshire House lawmakers are considering a bill that requires all multiple-stall bathrooms in public schools to be restricted to one sex, continuing a years-long debate around rights for transgender students.Sponsored by Rep. Michael Moffett, a...
Amid applause and boos, Biden tells a divided Congress: ‘Finish the job’
By ZEKE MILLER, SEUNG MIN KIM and LISA MASCARO
WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden exhorted Congress Tuesday night to work with him to “finish the job” of rebuilding the economy and uniting the nation as he delivered a State of the Union address aimed at reassuring a country beset by pessimism and...
Highlights of the week ahead in the NH House and Senate
By BOB SANDERS
Minimum wage hikes, labor and tenant protections and a host of energy-related bills are on the agenda for the NH legislature this week.TuesdayThe House Science, Technology and Energy Committee will hold hearings Tuesday on HB 558, which would regulate...
On the trail: D-Day for NH primary as DNC set to upend nominating calendar
By PAUL STEINHAUSER
PHILADELPHIA – The Democratic National Committee is expected to endorse a dramatic change to the top of its presidential nominating calendar for the 2024 election cycle, bumping New Hampshire from its cherished century-old position as the...
Just a sip: Bill would let students under 21 take college wine and beer courses
By ETHAN DEWITT
The hospitality program at the University of New Hampshire’s Paul College of Business and Economics offers a number of courses, from event planning to finance. But one of the most sought-after courses is available only to its oldest students. Students...
Bill to enshrine abortion rights into state law heard in Senate committee
By MICHAELA TOWFIGHI
When Rebecca Perkins Kwoka first discussed access to abortion in the New Hampshire Senate last year, she was 24 weeks pregnant. The 24-week mark holds significance in New Hampshire – it’s the timeframe in which abortion is no longer legal in the state...
Senate weighs making vote machine audits permanent
By ETHAN DEWITT
During the 2022 elections, the New Hampshire Secretary of State’s Office audited voting machines in six different polling places, checking for accuracy and consistency as part of a one-time requirement by the Legislature.Now, Senate lawmakers are...
Former president’s visit underscores divide among NH GOP
By MICHAELA TOWFIGHI
As the crowd applauded former President Donald Trump, who gave the keynote speech Saturday at the annual GOP meeting in Salem, a former state party chairman was not in attendance.Steve Duprey is among a list of prominent New Hampshire Republicans who...
