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New Hampshire

With 2 women running, the New Hampshire governor's race is both close and personal

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With 2 women running, the New Hampshire governor's race is both close and personal


CONCORD, N.H. — One of the nation’s most competitive gubernatorial races has also become intensely personal.

None of the nation’s 12 female governors are up for reelection, but five women are running as major party gubernatorial nominees in four states. Two of them are in New Hampshire, where Republican Kelly Ayotte and Democrat Joyce Craig are competing to succeed Gov. Chris Sununu, a Republican who is not seeking a fifth two-year term.

While voters and the candidates themselves say their gender is a nonissue in a state with a history of electing women to top offices, it has influenced their approaches to the topic of abortion and reproductive health care. Both candidates have produced television ads in which they describe having miscarriages after medical appointments during which no fetal heartbeats were detected.

“I know what that feeling is like when you have your dream shattered, and you think, ‘Wow, what if I can’t have a baby?’” says Ayotte, a former U.S. senator and state attorney general.

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But while Ayotte’s ad focuses on affirming support for in vitro fertilization, Craig’s promises broader protections of reproductive rights.

“I was able to end my pregnancy without interference,” says Craig, the former mayor of Manchester. “I’m running for governor because these decisions belong to women, not politicians.”

In Indiana, where Democrat Jennifer McCormick is the only woman in the race, she has highlighted her gender as she criticizes her Republican gubernatorial opponent, U.S. Sen. Mike Braun, for supporting their state’s near-total ban on abortion.

“I am the only person on this stage who’s been pregnant, I am the only person on this stage who’s given birth, and I am the only person on this stage who is a mom,” she said in a recent debate. “I understand firsthand the complexities associated with pregnancy. I trust women, and I trust health care providers.”

But the “trust women” slogan comes with an asterisk in New Hampshire, where Craig often highlights Ayotte’s support for a federal abortion ban after 20 weeks of pregnancy and her role shepherding Justice Neil Gorsuch through his confirmation to the U.S. Supreme Court, where he joined in overturning Roe v. Wade.

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“We can’t trust what she’s saying right now because she has shown where she is on the topic of reproductive freedom,” Craig said in an interview last week.

Ayotte insists she will veto any bill further restricting abortion in New Hampshire, where Republican majorities in 2021 made abortion illegal after 24 weeks of pregnancy.

“I’m not going to change our law,” Ayotte said. “She can say all kinds of things about it, but I think I’ve been pretty clear on what my position is.”

As for her trustworthiness, Ayotte emphasizes that New Hampshire voters sent her to the Senate and governors of both parties appointed her to be state attorney general before that.

“I’ve served this state,” she said. “I’ve served the people of New Hampshire.”

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As a senator, Ayotte was part of the nation’s first all-female congressional delegation, just one of New Hampshire’s notable achievements in electing women. It also was the first state to have a female governor, state Senate president and House speaker at the same time, and the first to have a female majority in its Senate. In 2008, Jeanne Shaheen became the first woman in the country to have served both as governor and U.S. senator. Sen. Maggie Hassan became the second after defeating Ayotte in 2016.

That track record makes New Hampshire an outlier, said Linda Fowler, a professor emerita of government at Dartmouth College who has studied women in politics. She said research suggests voters have been more comfortable electing women as representatives because they view them as caring and good listeners, but they see governors as CEOs and believe the job demands a more masculine approach.

With no man in this race, Fowler says it will largely come down to turnout. Ayotte has skillfully tied Craig to crime, homelessness and other “big city” ills in Manchester, she said, but the abortion issue has Democrats energized up and down the ticket.

“This race is really going to be about mobilization, and whether abortion is going to outweigh people’s mistrust of our only big city,” Fowler said.

According to the Rutgers Center for American Women in Politics, 30 Democratic women and 19 Republican women have served as governor in 32 states, but never before have so many served at the same time. Even if the three other women — McCormick in Indiana, Crystal Quade in Missouri and Esther Charlestin in Vermont — fail, the New Hampshire race means a new record will be set of 13 women serving simultaneously as governor. And the number could grow with Minnesota Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan poised to take the state’s top office if Gov. Tim Walz is elected vice president.

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Despite the imminent record break, both Ayotte and Craig said their gender hasn’t come up on the campaign trail, and in a dozen or so interviews, voters told The Associated Press they’ve barely noticed that the race features two women.

Rachel Johnson, a Republican who ran into Ayotte at a highway rest area, said she doesn’t know much about the candidate but plans to vote for her.

“Whoever is best for the job,” she said. “Gender has nothing to do with it.”

Victoria Hill, an independent voter from Gorham, echoed that sentiment, though she is voting for Craig. After meeting the candidate in a guitar shop in Littleton, Hill praised Craig’s commitment to public education while criticizing Ayotte’s support for former President Donald Trump. Ayotte rescinded her support for Trump in 2016 over his lewd comments about women but says she now backs him again because his record in office was better than the Biden administration’s.

“That’s the problem I have — her just wavering with whichever way the wind is blowing,” Hill said.

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Associated Press Writer Isabella Volmert contributed to this report.



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New Hampshire

NH Lottery Mega Millions, Lucky For Life winning numbers for Dec. 23, 2025

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The New Hampshire Lottery offers several draw games for those aiming to win big. Here’s a look at Tuesday, Dec. 23, 2025 results for each game:

Winning Mega Millions numbers from Dec. 23 drawing

15-37-38-41-64, Mega Ball: 21

Check Mega Millions payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Lucky For Life numbers from Dec. 23 drawing

02-04-12-37-42, Lucky Ball: 10

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Check Lucky For Life payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Pick 3 numbers from Dec. 23 drawing

Day: 1-9-3

Evening: 0-1-6

Check Pick 3 payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Pick 4 numbers from Dec. 23 drawing

Day: 4-9-8-7

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Evening: 6-4-8-4

Check Pick 4 payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Gimme 5 numbers from Dec. 23 drawing

21-25-31-36-39

Check Gimme 5 payouts and previous drawings here.

Feeling lucky? Explore the latest lottery news & results

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When are the New Hampshire Lottery drawings held?

  • Powerball: 10:59 p.m. Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday.
  • Pick 3, 4: 1:10 p.m. and 6:55 p.m. daily.
  • Mega Millions: 11:00 p.m. Tuesday and Friday.
  • Megabucks Plus: 7:59 p.m. Monday, Wednesday and Saturday.
  • Lucky for Life: 10:38 p.m. daily.
  • Gimme 5: 6:55 p.m. Monday through Friday.

Winning lottery numbers are sponsored by Jackpocket, the official digital lottery courier of the USA TODAY Network.

Where can you buy lottery tickets?

Tickets can be purchased in person at gas stations, convenience stores and grocery stores. Some airport terminals may also sell lottery tickets.

You can also order tickets online through Jackpocket, the official digital lottery courier of the USA TODAY Network, in these U.S. states and territories: Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Idaho, Maine, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Oregon, Puerto Rico, Washington D.C., and West Virginia. The Jackpocket app allows you to pick your lottery game and numbers, place your order, see your ticket and collect your winnings all using your phone or home computer.

Jackpocket is the official digital lottery courier of the USA TODAY Network. Gannett may earn revenue for audience referrals to Jackpocket services. GAMBLING PROBLEM? CALL 1-800-GAMBLER, Call 877-8-HOPENY/text HOPENY (467369) (NY). 18+ (19+ in NE, 21+ in AZ). Physically present where Jackpocket operates. Jackpocket is not affiliated with any State Lottery. Eligibility Restrictions apply. Void where prohibited. Terms: jackpocket.com/tos.

This results page was generated automatically using information from TinBu and a template written and reviewed by a New Hampshire managing editor. You can send feedback using this form.

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N.H. city’s refusal to fly ‘Save Women’s Sports’ and ‘An Appeal to Heaven’ flags is unconstitutional, appeals court rules – The Boston Globe

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N.H. city’s refusal to fly ‘Save Women’s Sports’ and ‘An Appeal to Heaven’ flags is unconstitutional, appeals court rules – The Boston Globe


A federal appeals court has ruled officials in Nashua, N.H., engaged in unconstitutional viewpoint discrimination when they denied requests to fly certain politically charged flags, while allowing others, on the city’s “citizen flag pole.”

Bethany and Stephen Scaer, whose requests to hoist banners with the slogans “Save Women’s Sports” and “An Appeal to Heaven” were rejected, teamed up with the Institute for Free Speech and filed a lawsuit in 2024 alleging their First Amendment rights were violated.

The trial court in New Hampshire initially concluded the Scaers hadn’t demonstrated a likelihood that their case would succeed, since the flags approved for display at City Hall constitute government speech. But three judges on the First Circuit Court of Appeals reversed that decision Monday, finding that the flagpole in question had actually been a venue for private speech all along.

The case relates to one Boston lost in 2022, when the US Supreme Court ruled unanimously that the city had unconstitutionally rejected an application to fly a Christian flag.

Even though Nashua sought to clarify its policy in response to that 2022 precedent, the city’s process for deciding which flags from the general public would be allowed still didn’t convert private speech into government speech, according to the First Circuit ruling.

“Nashua was doing no more than simply approving that private speech with which it agreed,” Judge Sandra L. Lynch wrote in the ruling, joined by judges Gustavo A. Gelpí and Jeffrey R. Howard.

In a statement, Beth Scaer said the ruling offers a sense of vindication.

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“No one should have to face government censorship for expressing their beliefs,” she said. “We’re thrilled with this victory for free speech rights throughout New England.”

Nathan Ristuccia, an attorney with the Institute for Free Speech who argued the case on appeal, said his team is delighted by the ruling.

“As the First Circuit recognized, governments cannot get away with censorship by labeling that censorship ‘government speech,’” Ristuccia said.

Before the lawsuit was filed, Nashua Mayor James W. Donchess said the city declined to fly the “Save Women’s Sports” flag because officials interpreted it as implying transgender people should face discrimination.

The Scaers, who regularly demonstrate against gender-affirming medical interventions for minors and against inclusion of transgender athletes in women’s and girls’ sports, rejected the notion that their messaging is transphobic.

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As for the “Appeal to Heaven” flag, which features a pine tree, Donchess said city officials want to avoid endorsing the additional meaning it has taken on in recent years.

The banner emerged during the American Revolution, with a nod to the Pine Tree Riot in New Hampshire, an act of American resistance that preceded the Boston Tea Party. More recently, the flag has also been used by Christian nationalists, including some who carried it to the US Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, when a violent mob delayed the certification of President Trump’s 2020 electoral defeat.

An “Appeal To Heaven” flag is pictured as people gather at Independence Mall to support President Donald Trump as he visits the National Constitution Center to participate in the ABC News town hall on Sept. 15, 2020, in Philadelphia. Michael Perez/Associated Press

In her application to raise the “Appeal to Heaven” flag, Beth Scaer said she wanted to honor the soldiers from Nashua who fought and died at the Battle of Bunker Hill in 1775. She and her husband said their request has nothing to do with the Capitol riot.

Nashua has also declined to fly several other flags since the 2022 policy update, including a “pro-life” flag and a Palestinian flag, according to the lawsuit.

Nashua’s attorney, Steven A. Bolton, said on Tuesday that the city has not yet determined whether to file an appeal. He noted that the appellate ruling calls for the trial court to grant interim declaratory relief while the case proceeds.

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Bolton said the city has stopped inviting community members to fly their own flags.

“A new policy was adopted more than a year ago, and we no longer use the term ‘citizen’s flag pole,’” he said. “We no longer accept applications from other parties to fly flags on any of the poles on the City Hall grounds.”


Steven Porter can be reached at steven.porter@globe.com. Follow him @reporterporter.





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Nashua man dies after car crash and fire on Route 101 in Candia, investigation ongoing

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Nashua man dies after car crash and fire on Route 101 in Candia, investigation ongoing


CANDIA, NH (WGME) – Early Monday morning, a Nashua man died following a crash on Route 101 eastbound in Candia, New Hampshire.

Joseph H. Lavoie, 58, of Nashua, had been driving along Route 101 eastbound near Exit 3 when he lost control of his car, resulting in a drift off the right side of the highway before striking the cement bridge at the Old Candia Road overpass.

State troopers arrived at the scene to find Lavoie’s car on fire, though several passing drivers had helped to pull Lavoie out of his car. The fire was quickly extinguished.

Lavoie was taken to the hospital where he later died from his injuries.

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The crash remains under investigation. Anyone with information that may assist the investigation is asked to contact Trooper Kevin LeDoux via email at Kevin.P.LeDeoux@dos.nh.gov.



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