2018 New Hampshire Senate election
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All 24 seats in the New Hampshire Senate 13 seats needed for a majority | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Results of New Hampshire Senate elections 2018, by district | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Elections in New Hampshire |
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The 2018 New Hampshire Senate election was held on November 6, 2018, concurrently with the elections for the New Hampshire House of Representatives, to elect members to the 166th New Hampshire General Court. All 24 seats in the New Hampshire Senate were up for election. It resulted in Democrats gaining control of both chambers of the New Hampshire General Court, ending the total control of New Hampshire's state government, that Republicans had held in New Hampshire since the 2016 state elections.
Primary elections were held on September 11, 2018.
Background
In the 2016 New Hampshire state elections, Republicans held on to their majority in the
In the aftermath of his 2016 election, then president-elect Donald Trump claimed in a tweet that voter fraud had occurred in New Hampshire.[1] In February 2017, Trump advisor Stephen Miller reaffirmed that position by claiming "busing voters in to New Hampshire is widely known by anyone who’s worked in New Hampshire politics".[2] These claims were called "baseless" by several observers.[3]
In response to those allegations, the Republican majorities in the New Hampshire General Court drafted bills changing voter registration rules. Senate Bill 3 (SB 3) passed both chambers of the New Hampshire General Court on party-line votes and was signed in to law by Governor Sununu on July 10, 2017.[4] The new law requires voters to declare a "domicile" in New Hampshire. It also included jail sentences of up to one year or a fine of up to $5,000, if voters registered and not provided necessary paperwork as proof within 10 day or 30 days in smaller towns.[5] Republicans pointed to over 5,000 voters who voted in the 2016 election after identifying with an out-of-state driver's licence, that have not gotten an in-state licence as of September 2017.[6] Democrats suspected a voter suppression scheme, that targeted college students, that they think are most likely to use identification issued by other states.[7]
The League of Women Voters, the New Hampshire Democratic Party and several college students challenged the new law in court.[5] They pointed to the Supreme Court's decision in Symm v. United States, that guaranteed college students the right to vote at their university. The trial judge of the Hillsborough Superior Court decided on October 22, 2018, that the state cannot apply the law in the upcoming elections.[8] The Attorney General of New Hampshire's office then filed an emergency motion with the New Hampshire Supreme Court.[9] The State Supreme Court sided with the state in a unanimous 5-0 decision arguing that overturning the law so close to elections was potentially confusing and disruptive.[10] The State Supreme Court did not decide on the merits of the law in this decision.[9] Therefore, SB3 was first applied in the 2018 elections.
Results
Analysis
In the 2018 elections, Democrats saw gains in state elections across the countries, gaining multiple Governorships and legislative chambers. Democrats also won control of the United States House of Representatives for the first time since 2010. Commentators called the election results a "blue wave", that was especially pronounced in state elections.[11][12]
In the New Hampshire Senate, Democrats were able to flip Districts 9, 11, 12, 23 and 24, while the Republicans flipped District 1. The Democratic gains were mostly in less rural areas in Southern and Eastern New Hampshire while the Republican gains were limited to the rural
Overview
14 | 10 |
Democratic | Republican |
Source: Official results.[15]
Parties | Candidates | Seats | Popular Vote | ||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2016 | 2018 | +/- | Strength | Vote | % | Change | |||
Democratic
|
24 | 10 | 14 | 4 | 58.33% | 296,608 | 53.77% | 4.13% | |
Republican
|
23 | 14 | 10 | 4 | 41.67% | 253,412 | 45.94% | 4.42% | |
Libertarian | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0.00% | 1,461 | 0.26% | 0.26% | ||
Independent | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0.00% | 1,103 | 0.03% | 0.03% | ||
Total | 51 | 24 | 24 | 0 | 100.00% | 551,629 | 100.00% | - |
Detailed results
District 1 • District 2 • District 3 • District 4 • District 5 • District 6 • District 7 • District 8 • District 9 • District 10 • District 11 • District 12 • District 13 • District 14 • District 15 • District 16 • District 17 • District 18 • District 19 • District 20 • District 21 • District 22 • District 23 • District 24 |
District 1
Incumbent Democratic state senator
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Republican | David Starr | 10,560 | 54.3 | |
Democratic | Jeff Woodburn (incumbent) | 8,739 | 44.9 | |
Independent
|
Kathleen Kelley (write-in) | 148 | 0.8 | |
Total votes | 19,447 | 100 | ||
Republican gain from Democratic |
District 2
Incumbent Republican state senator
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Republican | Bob Giuda (incumbent) | 12,127 | 51.6 | |
Democratic | Bill Bolton | 11,376 | 48.4 | |
Total votes | 23,503 | 100 | ||
Republican hold |
District 3
Incumbent Republican state senator
Primary election | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
Republican | Jeb Bradley (incumbent) | 4,326 | 77.4 | |
Republican | Steven Steiner | 1,262 | 22.6 | |
Total votes | 5,588 | 100 | ||
General election | ||||
Republican | Jeb Bradley (incumbent) | 14,841 | 56.6 | |
Democratic | Christopher Meier | 10,895 | 41.5 | |
Libertarian | Tania Butler | 506 | 1.9 | |
Total votes | 26,242 | 100 | ||
Republican hold |
District 4
Incumbent Democrat State Senator
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Democratic | David Watters (incumbent) | 15,299 | 100 | |
Total votes | 15,299 | 100 | ||
Democratic hold |
District 5
Incumbent Democratic state senator
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Democratic | Martha Hennessey (incumbent) | 16,932 | 71.2 | |
Republican | Patrick Lozito | 6,862 | 28.8 | |
Total votes | 23,794 | 100 | ||
Democratic hold |
District 6
Incumbent Republican state senator
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Republican | James Gray (incumbent) | 11,602 | 54.9 | |
Democratic | Anne Grassie | 9,537 | 45.1 | |
Total votes | 21,139 | 100 | ||
Republican hold |
District 7
Incumbent Republican state senator
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Republican | Harold French (incumbent) | 11,616 | 53.4 | |
Democratic | Mason Donovan | 10,141 | 46.6 | |
Total votes | 21,757 | 100 | ||
Republican hold |
District 8
Incumbent Republican state senator
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Republican | Ruth Ward (incumbent) | 12,859 | 51.3 | |
Democratic | Jenn Alford-Teaster | 12,212 | 48.7 | |
Total votes | 25,071 | 100 | ||
Republican hold |
District 9
Incumbent Republican state senator
Primary election | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
Democratic | Jeanne Dietsch | 3,728 | 54.6 | |
Democratic | Mark Fernald | 2,219 | 32.5 | |
Democratic | Bruce Fox | 884 | 12.9 | |
Total votes | 6,831 | 100 | ||
Republican | Dan Hynes | 2,699 | 53.1 | |
Republican | Terry Wolf | 2,382 | 46.9 | |
Total votes | 5,081 | 100 | ||
General election | ||||
Democratic | Jeanne Dietsch | 14,037 | 52.4 | |
Republican | Dan Hynes | 12,776 | 47.6 | |
Total votes | 26,813 | 100 | ||
Democratic gain from Republican |
District 10
Incumbent Democratic state senator
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Democratic | Jay Kahn (incumbent) | 15,036 | 65.1 | |
Republican | Dan LeClair | 7,538 | 32.7 | |
Libertarian | Ian Freeman | 507 | 2.2 | |
Total votes | 23,081 | 100 | ||
Democratic hold |
District 11
Incumbent Republican state senator
Primary election | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
Democratic | Shannon Chandley | 3,917 | 83.1 | |
Democratic | Roger Tilton | 797 | 16.9 | |
Total votes | 4,714 | 100 | ||
General election | ||||
Democratic | Shannon Chandley | 13,361 | 52.3 | |
Republican | Gary L. Daniels (incumbent) | 12,205 | 47.7 | |
Total votes | 25,566 | 100 | ||
Democratic gain from Republican |
District 12
Incumbent Republican state senator
Primary election | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
Democratic | Melanie Levesque | 3,727 | 79.4 | |
Democratic | Tom Falter | 969 | 20.6 | |
Total votes | 4,696 | 100 | ||
Republican | Kevin Avard (incumbent) | 3,274 | 76.1 | |
Republican | Richard Dowd | 1,028 | 23.9 | |
Total votes | 4,302 | 100 | ||
General election | ||||
Democratic | Melanie Levesque | 12,553 | 50.3 | |
Republican | Kevin Avard (incumbent) | 12,384 | 49.7 | |
Total votes | 24,937 | 100 | ||
Democratic gain from Republican |
District 13
Incumbent Democratic state senator
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Democratic | Cindy Rosenwald | 11,307 | 60.9 | |
Republican | David Schoneman | 7,259 | 39.1 | |
Total votes | 18,566 | 100 | ||
Democratic hold |
District 14
Incumbent Republican state senator
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Republican | Sharon Carson (incumbent) | 12,823 | 57.6 | |
Democratic | Tammy Siekmann | 9,424 | 42.4 | |
Total votes | 22,247 | 100 | ||
Republican hold |
District 15
Incumbent Democratic state senator
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Democratic | Dan Feltes (incumbent) | 15,929 | 66.2 | |
Republican | Pamela Ean | 8,119 | 33.8 | |
Total votes | 24,048 | 100 | ||
Democratic hold |
District 16
Incumbent Democratic state senator
Primary election | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
Republican | David Boutin | 2,961 | 60.0 | |
Republican | Bill Kuch | 1,978 | 40.0 | |
Total votes | 4,939 | 100 | ||
General election | ||||
Democratic | Kevin Cavanaugh (incumbent) | 12,990 | 52.3 | |
Republican | David Boutin | 11,853 | 47.7 | |
Total votes | 24,843 | 100 | ||
Democratic hold |
District 17
Incumbent Republican state senator
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Republican | John Reagan (incumbent) | 13,172 | 55.5 | |
Democratic | Christopher Roundy | 10,578 | 44.5 | |
Total votes | 23,750 | 100 | ||
Republican hold |
District 18
Incumbent Democratic state senator
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Democratic | Donna Soucy (incumbent) | 10,276 | 56.0 | |
Republican | George Lambert | 8,066 | 44.0 | |
Total votes | 18,342 | 100 | ||
Democratic hold |
District 19
Incumbent Republican state senator
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Republican | Regina Birdsell (incumbent) | 12,192 | 56.8 | |
Democratic | Kristina Durocher | 9,269 | 43.2 | |
Total votes | 21,461 | 100 | ||
Republican hold |
District 20
Incumbent Democratic state senator
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Democratic | Lou D'Allesandro (incumbent) | 9,903 | 58.4 | |
Republican | Carla Gericke | 7,047 | 41.6 | |
Total votes | 16,950 | 100 | ||
Democratic hold |
District 21
Incumbent Democratic state senator
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Democratic | Martha Fuller Clark (incumbent) | 19,084 | 72.3 | |
Republican | Peter Macdonald | 7,324 | 27.7 | |
Total votes | 26,408 | 100 | ||
Democratic hold |
District 22
Incumbent Republican state senator
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Republican | Chuck Morse (incumbent) | 13,571 | 58.6 | |
Democratic | Richard O'Shaughnessy | 9,155 | 39.5 | |
Libertarian | Mitch Dyer | 448 | 1.9 | |
Total votes | 23,174 | 100 | ||
Republican hold |
District 23
Incumbent Republican state senator
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Democratic | Jon Morgan | 12,911 | 50.2 | |
Republican | Bill Gannon (incumbent) | 12,806 | 49.8 | |
Total votes | 25,717 | 100 | ||
Democratic gain from Republican |
District 24
Incumbent Republican state senator
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Democratic | Tom Sherman | 15,664 | 53.1 | |
Republican | Daniel Innis (incumbent) | 13,832 | 46.9 | |
Total votes | 29,496 | 100 | ||
Democratic gain from Republican |
References
- ^ "Trump's baseless assertions of voter fraud called 'stunning'". Politico. November 27, 2016. Retrieved December 25, 2019.
- ^ "Voter Fraud in New Hampshire? Trump Has No Proof and Many Skeptics". New York Times. February 13, 2017. Retrieved December 25, 2019.
- ^ "No Evidence of Busing Voters to N.H." Factcheck. February 14, 2017. Retrieved December 25, 2019.
- ^ "Sununu signs controversial GOP voter registration measure into law". WMUR9. July 10, 2017. Retrieved December 25, 2019.
- ^ a b "Court blocks penalties in new New Hampshire voting law". Politico. September 12, 2017. Retrieved December 25, 2019.
- ^ "Updated: New voting statistics show 6,540 people registered to vote in NH last year using out-of-state driver's licenses as IDs". WMUR9. September 8, 2017. Retrieved December 25, 2019.
- ^ "On eve of voter commission hearing in N.H., Bill Gardner in middle of partisan divide". Concord Monitor. September 11, 2017. Retrieved December 25, 2019.
- ^ "Judge bars New Hampshire proof of residency requirement for new voters". Reuters. October 23, 2018. Retrieved December 25, 2019.
- ^ a b "N.H. Supreme Court restores registration forms, process of 2017 'proof-of-domicile' law SB 3". WMUR9. October 26, 2018. Retrieved December 25, 2019.
- ^ "Supreme Court sides with state in SB 3 case". Nashua Telegraph. October 27, 2018. Retrieved December 25, 2019.
- ^ "The blue wave was big — and significant — in state legislatures". Washington Post. November 12, 2018. Retrieved December 25, 2019.
- ^ "The Biggest Shift of the Midterms Wasn't in Congress—It Was in the States". Fortune. November 12, 2018. Retrieved December 25, 2019.
- ^ "In the North Country, a district divided over Sen. Jeff Woodburn". Concord Monitor. November 3, 2018. Retrieved December 25, 2019.
- ^ "N.H. Lawmaker Accused Of Domestic Violence Loses Reelection Bid". New Hampshire Public Radio. November 7, 2018. Retrieved December 25, 2019.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y "New Hampshire 2018 General Election Information and Results". New Hampshire Secretary of State. Retrieved December 25, 2019.
- ^ http://www.unionleader.com/State-senator-facing-nine-criminal-charges Archived 2018-08-02 at the Wayback Machine State Senator Facing Nine Criminal Charges
- ^ "State Senate Democrats choose Soucy to succeed Woodburn as minority leader". WMUR9. August 6, 2018. Retrieved December 25, 2019.
- ^ a b c "New Hampshire State Senate elections, 2018". Ballotpedia. Retrieved December 25, 2019.