Politics & Government
Podcast: One Year In, Gov. Ayotte Loves Her Job, And She's Ready For A Fight
Gov. Kelly Ayotte says she's ready to defend her record — assuming the Democrats can find a viable opponent to run against her in 2026.

A year after taking office, Gov. Kelly Ayotte tells NHJournal, “I love the job.” And she’s ready to defend her record — assuming the Democrats can find a viable opponent to run against her.
In a wide-ranging conversation, the first-term Republican says she’s happy with the results from the budget she and the GOP passed and has no regrets. She reiterated her anti-tax-hike stance — including the so-called “Paint Tax” passed by the legislature.
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She touted New Hampshire’s outlier stance in New England, defended the state’s efforts to push back on restrictive local zoning rules and even offered some advice for Gov. Tim Walz in politically-war-torn Minnesota.
Plus — Greg Moore with Americans for Prosperity and UNH political science professor Dante Scala join NHJournal’s Michael Graham to discuss the state of New Hampshire’s races for governor, Congress and the U.S. Senate
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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.