As Ayotte Unveils Manchester Coalition, Craig Leaves Warmington Hanging

By Michael Graham, NH Journal

Gov. Kelly Ayotte’s campaign announced a 42-member “Manchester for Kelly” coalition on Monday, chaired by Mayor Jay Ruais, with all of its members endorsing her reelection bid.

Cinde Warmington, on the other hand, is still waiting for an endorsement from Manchester’s former mayor, Democrat Joyce Craig.

Two years ago, Craig lost the governor’s race to Ayotte, in part because the Republican carried the three-term mayor’s city by 4 percentage points.

And that result is notable given that Vice President Kamala Harris carried Manchester by about 9 percentage points in 2024, according to election data compiled from New Hampshire secretary of state results.

With President Trump’s approval underwater in New Hampshire, Ayotte is hoping to build on her Manchester success and keep the Queen City on board this November.

So, how’s she doing?

“Gov. Ayotte has been an indispensable ally to the Queen City. When Manchester calls, she answers and delivers,” Ruais told NHJournal. “Manchester is stronger and safer because of her leadership, and I’m honored to support her.”

The coalition includes current and former elected officials, business owners and community leaders. Among them are Executive Councilor John Stephen; former Mayor Ted Gatsas; state Sen. Victoria Sullivan; state Reps. Mark Proulx, Kathleen Paquette, Larry Gagne, Steve Kesselring, Brian Cole and Mark McLean; and Hillsborough County Commissioner Toni Pappas.

Manchester aldermen Crissy Kantor, Kelly Thomas, Norm Vincent and Ed Sapienza also joined the coalition, along with former Alderman Joe Kelly Levasseur.

Levasseur is an outspoken political opponent of Ruais, but he’s on board for Ayotte.

“I think she’ll carry Manchester again,” Levasseur told NHJournal. “She’s done a great job, and she has downshifted a lot of money to Manchester — in particular, the money for the school district that they (supposedly) needed.”

That’s a reference to Ayotte’s success in restoring approximately $10 million in state education aid that Manchester was poised to lose under the legislature’s proposed budget, a success the governor is happy to tout.

“From reversing cuts to Manchester schools, to fixing the broken bail system, to tackling the housing crisis and more, I’m proud of the work we’ve done to deliver for our state’s largest city,” Ayotte said.

State Sen. Victoria Sullivan (R-Manchester) says she saw support for Ayotte at Glendi, the annual Greek festival at St. George Greek Orthodox Cathedral on Hanover Street.

“I was at Glendi over the weekend helping out, and I can tell you that when the governor came in, people were very excited to see her and speak with her,” Sullivan told NHJournal.

Meanwhile, Warmington is struggling to show political strength in the state’s largest city — a city where Democrats have often prospered. It’s the political base of U.S. Rep. Chris Pappas and home to former Senate Democratic Leader Donna Soucy. Nine of the 14 current aldermen are Democrats, and the last New Hampshire governor born in Manchester was Democrat John W. King. He served from 1963 to 1969.

But the biggest blow is Craig’s refusal to endorse the party’s nominee for governor. Warmington told a left-wing podcaster that she’s spoken with Craig and no endorsement will be forthcoming.

“I have talked to Joyce, and I respect Joyce,” Warmington said. “As you know, I threw my full support behind Joyce once I lost that primary. I have reached out to Joyce, and you know I respect that she is moving on and is a private citizen at this point in her life.”

While some Republicans worry that the national political climate will pull down their candidates, Sullivan disagrees.

“In my experience, New Hampshire voters are not easily influenced by national politics,” Sullivan said. “They understand that state Republicans will continue to protect the taxpayers from the income tax, sales tax and new housing fee that the Democrats have proposed.”

With both parties spending millions on the race for the U.S. Senate and Trump’s approval so low, Ayotte and her allies know she’s facing the potential of a blue wave in November. Surviving it means holding on to swing voters in a community like Manchester.

Jim Merrill, a GOP strategist and longtime Manchester resident, believes she can do it, in part because she has connections with the Queen City community.

“Kelly Ayotte has a special relationship with the city of Manchester,” Merrill said. “She knows our city, puts the time in here and has stepped up regularly to support this community. It is no surprise to me that Manchester embraces her as one of their own.”

It’s a strong enough embrace to get Levasseur on the same page as his rival, Ruais. Asked if there’s any other political event that could do the same, Levasseur quipped, “Yes. The day he announces he’s not running again.”

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.