The voters in State Senate District 8 will be represented for the next two years by someone who has never held an elected public office.
Ruth Ward, 79, of Stoddard, is a Republican, and has lived in the district for 21 years. She is originally from Gothenburg, Sweden, and immigrated to the United States in 1959. She has been married for 21 years and has three children.
Ward’s opponent is John Garvey, 64, a Democrat from New London. He has lived in the district for 21 years, and is originally from Fort Knox, Ky. He has been married for 20 years and has six children.
Ward said one of the most important issues she would like to focus on is fixing the state’s educational system.
Garvey said his focus would be on the state’s opioid epidemic, which he described as a “time bomb” the state needs to invest in immediately.
One way to tackle the crisis is to make Medicaid expansion permanent to make more resources available, Garvey said. The state’s inability to provide beds for people with substance abuse disorders and mental illnesses has created a waiting list for treatment, and about 40 percent of the resources dedicated to the opioid epidemic comes from Medicaid, he said.
Ward said the state has done a good job addressing the issue so far by allocating money from the expanded Medicaid program to address drug addiction, and she wants to see more resources given to law enforcement to crack down on drug dealers through the “Operation Granite Hammer” program. She would also like to see more resources given to rehabilitation programs.
On education, she believes in local control and would like to get rid of Common Core. She said the government should not be dictating what students are learning and feels parents do not have enough control over students’ curriculum. Ward would also like to see more vocational training available in schools, saying students who do not plan to go to college should have the opportunity to graduate high school with a skill set.
The second most important issue to Garvey is the state’s infrastructure, particularly in District 8. He said 50 bridges in the district are on the state’s red list, which documents state-owned bridges that have known deficiencies or are in poor condition, and that the roads are in bad shape. He also is in favor of creating a comprehensive transportation system in the state that would create more mobility in rural towns. He would have been in favor of the $4 million federal grant to study implementing rail rejected by the House of Representatives in March, but has not decided if rail would be the best option for the state. Garvey also wants to improve the state’s broadband internet service, which he said is critical for students to complete coursework and for the healthcare system to work.
A third issue Garvey would like to address is job creation. He said he has spoken to business owners who said they cannot find enough skilled individuals to fill jobs. While the state has a low unemployment rate of 2 percent, that does not mean everyone employed has a living wage. He also said the opioid epidemic is connected to employment issues, noting employee’s have to be able to pass a drug test.
Ward said she is particularly concerned about preserving the state’s environment. A board member for the Appalachian Mountain Club and a land steward for the Society for the Protection of New Hampshire Forests, she is against the Northern Pass project, saying the proposed towers would be destructive to the environment and create a visual impact that would harm the state’s tourism industry. She said if the project is passed, the lines should be buried to minimize damage. Ward also wishes to continue to educate people on the potential harm of invasive species to the state’s rivers and lakes.
Garvey’s wife is on the Eversource Energy board of trustees, and Garvey said as a senator he woud follow legislative ethics guidelines. Lawmakers are required to disclose conflicts of interests and can then decide whether to recuse themselves or not.
Ward is a retired nurse practioner, and has a bachelor’s in nursing from Pittsburg State College in Pittsburg, Mass. and a master’s in science from Boston University. She also holds a paralegal certificate from the New Hampshire Technical Institute.
Ward has previously ran for a state rep seat in 2012 and 2014, and lost both times.
Garvey is a professor at University of New Hampshire Law School and is also a private mediator and arbitor. Garvey served as one of the original attorneys in the Claremont School District v. Governor of New Hampshire case, which centered around the state’s educational funding formula. Garvey holds a bachelor’s in government from Harvard University in Cambridge, Mass., and recieved his legal degree from Suffolk University in Boston.
He previously ran for a Franklin City Council seat in the early 1990’s and lost.
A third candidate running for the seat is John Jeskevivius, 73, of Weare. He is originally from Uxbridge, Mass., and has lived in the state for eight years. Jeskevivius said he moved to the state as part of the Free State Project, which is an effort to have 20,000 people “liberty-minded people,” as he said, move to the state and infiltrate the legislature. Jeskevivius did not the get required signatures to be on the ballot.
The last Senator from District 8 was Gerry Little, who is now the state’s banking commissioner. The district includes the communities of Acworth, Antrim, Bennington, Bradford, Croydon, Deering, Francestown, Goshen, Grantham, Hillsborough, Langdon, Lempster, Marlow, Newbury, New London, Newport, Springfield, Stoddard, Sunapee, Sutton, Unity, Washington, Weare, and Windsor.
(Caitlin Andrews can be reached at 369-3309 or candrews@cmonitor.com.)