The Democrat messaging this election cycle is pretty wild. Let’s start with the most obvious evidence: Has any Democrat in the state of New Hampshire ever been endorsed by any anti-tax organization? Has any prominent Democrat from any town in the state ever stood up at a town meeting or school board meeting and questioned the spending? Has any Democrat running for office or in your town come out in support of the property tax cap question on the ballot?
Every single action every single Democrat takes every single year is to increase spending at the state, local and school level and now they are running on the mantra of lowering taxes? Yeah, right.
I remember a time when Democrats ran on the idea that by increasing spending, they
will create more services to create a better New Hampshire, although I do not generally agree with this, this was at least an arguable point. Now, many of their candidates are running on a “I will decrease your taxes” line. Meanwhile, Democrat voters across the state do not even want lower taxes. They may say they do but actions speak louder than words.
We see the votes they take. We know why our property taxes go up. The fact that the Democrat side is now trying to spin this and gaslight us to try and win in November is actually not that surprising, because they have no productive solutions to the problems they imagine, so they must try something.
People act like somehow electing Democrats will be a “positive change in NH.” The only change it will be is to make us like Maine, Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, New Jersey and New York. New Hampshire consistently ranks as the top state or top five states in so many crucial metrics all because of the Republican/Libertarian minded state legislature and the checks on spending and government bloat.
I often see Democrats online saying, “NH property taxes are rising due to state revenue cuts.” This is patently false. First of all, property taxes are only rising because the Democrats who are complaining are voting for ridiculous amounts of spending without even batting an eye. In my town of Bradford alone, we spend around $700,000 to fund a police department in a town with 1,700 residents and a 0% violent crime rate. I guess in the eyes of Democrats, the state should pay for that too?
Or how about the school district we are a part of which spends $56 million for roughly 1,700 kids — yes, we spend over $33,000 per kid. It’s over twice the national average, and significantly higher than the New Hampshire average. No amount of funding will save these schools. If they couldn’t make it work a decade ago with a $35 million budget, and they can’t make it work now with a $56 million budget, they aren’t going to make it work with any amount of money. The schools and towns problem is not funding, and it has never been funding. It is spending and only spending.
Despite decreasing enrollments every single year, the state of New Hampshire has continued to fund education at record numbers. Meanwhile, enrollment has fallen by 16%, and the state has increased its education funding by 58% (from $451,640,255 in 2004 to $715, 470,267 in 2026). This number means the state is giving roughly $7,300 per kid.
If schools spent even close to the national average, this would put New Hampshire in the middle of the pack for state contribution. It is more than adequate to cover costs, the problem is schools choose to overspend. The state is not responsible for your overspending in the same way that you are not responsible for someone else’s credit card debt. It is not the state’s purview to spend other people’s money to fund your reckless spending.
There is also no correlation between spending money and student outcomes. In the last five years, the state has doubled its contribution sent back to cities and towns from the rooms and meals tax. In my town of Bradford, we received $85,470.02 in 2020 and in 2026 we received $169,060.44, which is a 98% increase in funding back to my town. Someone please explain how this is a downshift?
Remember when you vote this November that the Democrats messaging is complete lies. Their candidates are out to lunch, and they will increase the budget by numbers that will make your jaw fall to the floor. Just in the last budget cycle alone they proposed almost $2 billion in new spending that will have to come from us.
Their entire goal is to inflate the budget so much that they must use other tax options to balance it which will inevitably lead us to an income and sales tax. They already did that last time they were in charge and thankfully we elected a Republican legislature that removed the wasteful and excessive spending.
As a New Hampshire native, I believe that this state is worth defending. Not a single person in this state can afford a democratic majority in Concord. Taxes are not affordable, and the Democrat “solutions” to non-existent problems will cost you more money. You can count on that!
Spencer Wyand lives on Bradford. He is married to Republican Senator Dan Innis.