Gruters Pledges RNC Will Spend 'Whatever It Takes' To Win In New Hampshire

By Michael Graham, NH Journal

Republican National Committee Chairman Joe Gruters came to Concord on Monday with a pledge to spend “whatever it takes” to elect John Sununu and the rest of New Hampshire’s GOP ticket this November.

“The battle for the country starts right here in New Hampshire. It starts right here in Concord,” Gruters told Republican activists gathered for the NHGOP’s post-primary Unity Breakfast at the Grappone Conference Center.

Gruters said the RNC has already contributed to Sununu’s U.S. Senate campaign and has more staff working in New Hampshire than during any previous midterm election.

“We think these are some of our best pickup opportunities in the entire country, and so we’re willing to make the investment,” Gruters said during a press conference after the breakfast. “That’s why I’m here. That’s why we’re rallying the troops.”

Asked how much the national party was prepared to spend in the Granite State, Gruters answered, “Whatever it takes. We’ve got to win these seats.”

The RNC arrives with a significant financial advantage. As NHJournal previously reported, the national party had about $128 million in cash on hand and no debt, compared with just over $16 million and more than $18 million in debt for the Democratic National Committee.

“We have the best candidates in the country here in New Hampshire. You have the cream of the crop. That’s why, for the first time ever, we’re investing more money, more staffers here than we’ve ever had in the midterm election in the history of the party.”

Gov. Kelly Ayotte, NH-01 nominee Anthony DiLorenzo, and former Gov. Chris Sununu joined other GOP officials at the event. NH-02 nominee Lily Tang Williams was absent because of her daughter’s wedding, party officials said.

The unity on display in Concord, where Sununu’s primary opponent, Scott Brown, was in attendance and well received, was in stark contrast to the New Hampshire Democrats’ unity breakfast last Wednesday.

Pappas’ opponent, progressive activist Karishma Manzur, didn’t attend and has yet to endorse him. Over the weekend, U.S. Rep. Maggie Goodlander’s challenger, state Rep. Paige Beauchemin, D-Nashua, released a statement saying she would not urge her supporters to back Goodlander.

“The Democrats are fragmented. They’re fighting among one another. They are refusing to endorse their nominees, and here it’s obviously just the opposite,” Sununu said. “The Republican Party in New Hampshire is as unified as I’ve seen it in a long time.”

Another point of division for Democrats is the first-in-the-nation presidential primary.

Gruters said his counterparts in the national Democratic Party have a very different view of the Granite State, which they revealed when they pushed New Hampshire out of the front of the 2028 primary contest line.

“It’s simple: Republicans love New Hampshire,” Gruters said, adding, “We will still promote New Hampshire in its role as the first-in-the-nation primary.”

Gruters also hit Democrats over the reasons why they ended the century-old tradition of New Hampshire going first.

“Let me tell you what happens with the Democrats (in 2028). They’re all gone. Democratic candidates aren’t going to show up. They don’t think New Hampshire looks enough like the country, don’t think it looks enough like the way the country should be, and so they pulled out.”

“But it’s clear the Democrats hate New Hampshire,” Gruters added. “They obviously don’t care about these races because if they did, they would have waited until after the election to make that (FITN) announcement. Shame on them.”

Republicans are attempting to retain narrow majorities in both chambers of Congress, something Gruters acknowledged the president’s party has rarely accomplished during a midterm election.

“We have to do something that almost has never been done. We have to defy history,” Gruters said. “We have to figure out a way to hold both the House and the Senate.”

Since World War II, a president’s party entering the midterms with control of both chambers has retained both just four times.

DiLorenzo, the GOP nominee in the open 1st Congressional District, focused his remarks

GOP NH01 nominee Anthony DiLorenzo answers press questions at the NHGOP Unity Breakfast with RNC Chair Joe Gruters.(Michael Graham)

on affordability, energy costs, and New Hampshire’s lack of broad-based taxes.

“If you appreciate that, which I know many people do because they’re flocking to New Hampshire, you can thank a Republican,” DiLorenzo said.

He also slammed the quality of the Democrats’ candidates.

“Our candidates are far superior. I mean, really: Warmington against Gov. Ayotte? It’s a joke. Sen. Sununu has the luxury of running against a busboy,” DiLorenzo said.

“And we all know who I’m running against. Somebody who, if her last name wasn’t Shaheen, would not be on the ballot because she hasn’t done anything besides ride her parents’ coattails.”

Ayotte used her time to tout Republican achievements, including fixing a broken bail system, reforms to promote more housing construction, and expanding school choice.

“And we banned sanctuary cities. We are the only state in New England that actually banned sanctuary cities,” Ayotte bragged.

“We have a great story to tell here in New Hampshire,” Ayotte said. “That is not an accident. That is because of Republican leadership.”

After the breakfast, Deputy Speaker Steve Smith, R-Charlestown, told NHJournal that the difference between the disarray among Democrats and GOP unity was significant.

“People who did not make it through the primary were here supporting the winners. It’s one team. Those are the two words that are really important now. ‘One. Team.’”

State Rep. Jim Creighton, R-Antrim, who’s running to replace retiring Sen. Ruth Ward, R-Stoddard, said it’s easy to be unified when you have a winning message.

“If you look at New Hampshire, it’s the best state in a dozen different categories. So you look at what the Republican legislature, along with Govs. Chris Sununu and Kelly Ayotte, has done. It’s made our state a really wonderful place to live.”

This story was originally published by the NH Journal, an online news publication dedicated to providing fair, unbiased reporting on, and analysis of, political news of interest to New Hampshire. For more stories from the NH Journal, visit NHJournal.com.