Demonstrators Protest NH Governor's Private Inauguration: Watch

CONCORD, NH — Demonstrators protested outside of the Statehouse in Concord on Thursday as the governor held a private inauguration inside that some said was not constitutional.

The rally, attended by about 125 people, featured several speakers addressing a range of issues from the state of the state during the coronavirus to the outcome of the 2020 election, voter fraud, and the need for conservatives and others to work together.

A number of speakers, like Carla Gericke, a former state Senate candidate who has previously been involved with the Free State Project, said it was important to embrace freedom and fundamental change — but also to love each other and support the good things in life. She said the times had shown that real change was not happening which would require other actions.

"The question we have is what do we do next," Gericke asked. "I am a peaceful person but I am very much in favor of problem-solving and I think we all understand we have a serious problem. If our politicians will not even face us … when our politicians suspend the U.S. and New Hampshire constitutions … then he, Chris Sununu, has opened the door to a discussion of New Hampshire independence and peaceful secession. If we cannot drain the swamp, then we need to take matters into our own hands … peacefully."

Sununu came under fire before the November election for endorsing Gericke, who ran as a Republican in Manchester and received about 44 percent of the vote, for her advocacy of having discussions about seceding. He endorsed her despite her protests against his shutdowns previously.

John Michael Dumas of Rise Up NH said the harm done to children and seniors during the coronavirus pandemic was unfathomable. But he said education and compassion were the solutions.

"We need to start talking about the people who can't speak for themselves," he said. "We have to keep our spirits together … even when people are standing against us. When we are standing up, we're standing up for them, too. We are in a battle now of love and fear."

Rob, the warrior poet, of the Proud Boys NH, called on everyone to de-platform themselves from social media companies and instead, communicate through mail, phone calls, and face-to-face meetings. Like the old days, he joked. He denounced the shooting death of Ashli Babbitt, a 14-year veteran of the U.S. Air Force, who was carrying a flag at the U.S. Capitol building after the Save America March. He said the police officer who shot her could have hit another police officer who was standing right near her before the shooting.

Another activist, calling himself Footloose, of Absolute Defiance, one of the groups that has been protesting outside of Sununu's house, said while it was great to talk about standing together, it was time to draw a line in the sand and pick a side. He also called for organizations to stop the infighting amongst themselves.

Paula Johnson, another activist who volunteered for the Trump for President campaign since the beginning in 2015, called Vice President Mike Pence and other Republicans in Washington "traitors" due to them not standing up to the Democrats who actively worked to depose Trump through endless investigations, lawsuits, and, ultimately, voter fraud during the 2020 election.

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"The Republican Party is dead for good," she said. "We have to take the country back now."

Regina Barnes, a selectwoman in Hampton, also condemned Sununu and legislators of both parties for not changing voting procedures in the state due to the pandemic via legislation in the House and Senate. That was not the only problem cities and towns were facing — bipartisan legislation for housing initiatives could also usurp locally elected town officials like planning and zoning boards. Barnes feared the new voting procedures, as well as fraud, would taint town elections in March and April.

"(The politicians) are not there for us," she said. "They are all fake (like) everything in this Statehouse. It's like a third world country. We're going to not comply. We've complied for 10 months and look at what they are doing. We want to keep it peaceful … so but we better start working together."

JR Hoell, one of the organizers for Reopen NH, was in Washington for the rally. He said there were at least 300,000 people, possibly more, whereas only a couple of hundred of those protesters entered the Capitol building and wrongly caused chaos and damage to government property — potentially, agitated, he said, by outsiders.

"We should all condemn that level of violence," he said. "There was no reason for that. That wasn't the mission."

While the attack on the offices and building was horrific, Hoell also blamed the media for its coverage, or lack of positive coverage, of the event, which he called peaceful.

"I have video footage of thousands of people, marching down Constitution Avenue, singing 'God Bless America.' That never made the news," he said. "Where was that? It was pretty cool."

The importance of the Reopen NH movement, as well as other groups, he said, was to continue to work to take power away from the establishment and make sure it was in the hands of the people.

"We need to change what is going on in that building," Hoell said, pointing to the Statehouse. "It needs to be open, now."

Sununu's press office did not return a request for comment about the protests.

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