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Republicans losing ground in N.H. amid unpopular Iran war, survey says – The Boston Globe

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Republicans losing ground in N.H. amid unpopular Iran war, survey says – The Boston Globe


A lack of public support for the US bombing campaign in Iran appears to be adding to the political headwinds facing Republicans in New Hampshire ahead of the midterm elections, according to data released Monday by the Saint Anselm College Survey Center.

An outright majority of registered voters in the state (59 percent) oppose the war — including 95 percent of Democrats, 63 percent of undeclared voters, and 20 percent of Republicans — according to a survey of 1,491 people conducted last week.

Those numbers, combined with domestic economic concerns, help to explain why Democrats appear to be gaining ground in New Hampshire, according to Neil Levesque, executive director of the New Hampshire Institute of Politics at Saint Anselm College.

“War and economic uncertainty tend to hurt the incumbent party,” he said.

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The survey found a notable shift in how voters responded when asked generally which party’s candidate would get their vote if the congressional elections were held now. Democrats outperformed Republicans by 8 percentage points (49 percent to 41 percent) on this “generic ballot” question in March, doubling the 4-point lead (46 percent to 42 percent) they had in November, when this survey was last conducted.

These numbers come as Democrats hope to hang onto all four seats in New Hampshire’s congressional delegation, despite Senator Jeanne Shaheen’s impending retirement triggering wide open contests for two of those seats.

Representative Chris Pappas, who represents the 1st Congressional District, has a commanding lead in the Democratic primary for Shaheen’s seat in the Senate. Meanwhile, former US senators John E. Sununu and Scott Brown are competing for the Republican nomination.

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Sununu, who secured President Trump’s endorsement in early February, leads Brown by 21 percentage points (49 percent to 28 percent), according to the Saint Anselm survey. (A poll conducted in January by the University of New Hampshire Survey Center found Sununu with a similar lead in the GOP race.)

Hypothetical matchups in the Saint Anselm survey data suggest Pappas may be on track to beat either Sununu or Brown in the general election, though his current lead over Sununu (46 percent to 43 percent) is barely larger than the margin of sampling error (2.5 percentage points).

Although voter sentiment appears to be shifting to favor Democrats in federal races, first-term Republican Governor Kelly Ayotte still appears to have an early advantage in her 2026 bid for reelection.

In hypothetical matchups with the Democratic candidates, Ayotte is leading Cinde Warmington by 7 percentage points (46 percent to 39 percent), and she’s leading Jonathan Kiper by 14 points (45 percent to 31 percent), according to the Saint Anselm survey.


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

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CAUGHT ON CAMERA: Driver seen driving across Windham, NH lawn late at night – Boston News, Weather, Sports | WHDH 7News

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CAUGHT ON CAMERA: Driver seen driving across Windham, NH lawn late at night – Boston News, Weather, Sports | WHDH 7News


WINDHAM, N.H. (WHDH) – Police are searching for a person seen on camera driving across a lawn in Windham, New Hampshire.

Windham police say on April 25, around midnight, a driver plowed across a lawn on Trails Edge Road in Windham.

Police say the vehicle is believed to be a late 1990s-early 2000s Chevrolet Silverado, but the color in unknown due to the video being black and white.

A next-door neighbor says their driveway was just redone one day before the incident.

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“The boys came in the other morning. I was surprised I didn’t hear anything,” she said. “That’s not that bad but kind of scary, though. I just hope it never happens again.”

The incident is still under investigation.

(Copyright (c) 2026 Sunbeam Television. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)

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Commission sets sights on UNESCO recognition for Mount Washington – NH Business Review

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Commission sets sights on UNESCO recognition for Mount Washington – NH Business Review


Ice coats instruments, buildings and rock fields atop Mount Washington. The peak’s extreme weather is one reason members of the Mount Washington Commission say they are seeking potential UNESCO World Heritage Site status for the peak. (Photo by Charlie Peachey, courtesy of the Mount Washington Observatory)

Australia’s Great Barrier Reef, Egypt’s Great Pyramids, Arizona’s Grand Canyon … and New Hampshire’s own Mount Washington?

At their April meeting, the group of institutions that steward the Northeast’s tallest mountain voted, 9-1, to take a preliminary step toward pursuing UNESCO World Heritage Site designation for the peak. The process may take years to decades, but if it is successful, Mount Washington could become the first site in New England to rank on the internationally recognized list.

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The possibility requires unique considerations, commission members said, including the need it would create to manage increased visitation that is already straining the summit’s alpine ecosystem and infrastructure.

Mount Washington Commission Chair Rob Kirsch believes the designation would be a boon for the mountain, bringing in not only more visitors but also more funding to invest in making the peak more resilient to traffic. Kirsch said he sees the application as a chance to showcase the wonder of Mount Washington at a grander scale.

“It will lead to an improved experience for people, generally,” Kirsch said. “It will give the state something to really be proud of.”

A property must meet at least one of 10 criteria to be considered for World Heritage Site status, according to the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). Mount Washington could invoke several categories in its application, including one for sites that “contain superlative natural phenomena or areas of exceptional natural beauty and aesthetic importance.”

There are many steps before Mount Washington could potentially be added to that list. The motion approved at the April 17 meeting of the Mount Washington Commission was the first: At that meeting, the commission approved pursuing “Tentative List” status for the mountain. One site is selected from that national list each year for submission to the United Nations World Heritage Committee.

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To move ahead, the application must receive support from the federal government. The commission has engaged with federal officials, and U.S. Sen. Jeanne Shaheen has been supportive of the project, commission members said.

“Mount Washington’s unique natural environment, scientific significance and rich history deserve global recognition,” Shaheen said in a statement to the Bulletin. “I am proud to support the Commission as they work to have our region’s most iconic peak designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site.”

From here, Kirsch said, the process may take decades. UNESCO designation typically boosts visitorship to a site, and proponents generally point to the associated regional economic boost as a benefit of the status. But the list has also been criticized as contributing to overtourism that can degrade sites or harm the communities around them. While it can boost public awareness of a place, there is no funding attached to the status itself.

The Mount Washington Commission is guided by a 2022 master plan for the mountain’s stewardship and conservation. In November 2025, the commission reviewed preliminary results from an assessment conducted as part of that plan, showing that crowds and climate change were large factors in the strain on the summit’s delicate natural environment and aging infrastructure.

With significant investment, the summit could readily accommodate significant crowds, said Kirsch, who is also an environmental lawyer, former weather observer at the Mount Washington Observatory, and a member of the observatory’s board of trustees. It’s not clear yet where the money for those investments will come from, but Kirsch said he hoped the UNESCO designation would help.

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“You can bring as many people as you want to Mount Washington as long as you make sufficient infrastructure investment to protect the environment,” he said.

The commission is still waiting for more results from the summit’s environmental assessment, but Kirsch said the boost to visitation would not affect the environment if the commission adheres to the guidelines laid out in the Master Plan. Rather, he said, the investments he hopes designation would help secure could help prevent any danger from overcrowding and ensure the mountain’s environment is protected.

He added that the benefit of a UNESCO designation would go beyond the businesses operating on the mountain — which include the Mount Washington Auto Road and the Mount Washington Cog Railway — to boost others throughout the North Country.


This story was originally produced by the New Hampshire Bulletin, an independent local newsroom that allows NH Business Review and other outlets to republish its reporting.

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Investigation into woman’s 2007 death resolved, NH officials say

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Investigation into woman’s 2007 death resolved, NH officials say


New Hampshire authorities said Thursday that they have resolved their investigation into the death of a woman nearly 20 years ago.

On Feb. 24, 2007, 25-year-old Carrie Hicks was found dead from two gunshot wounds to the head at the Acworth home of Wayne Ring, who was found alive in the same room with a single gunshot wound to the head.

Ring died at the age of 57 on May 26, 2012.

Investigators officially determined Ring fatally shot Hicks before attempting to take his own life.

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People who knew Hicks and Ring told authorities that they had formed a suicide “pact” and openly discussed suicide.

“Witness testimony revealed that Ms. Hicks had specifically instructed Mr. Ring to shoot her twice so she would not be left alive,” the office of Attorney General John Formella wrote in a press release.

A review of the autopsy report this year, along with a forensic reconstruction of bloodstain patterns, demonstrated that it was “medically and physically impossible” for Hicks to have fired the second shot she sustained, officials said. They added that, beyond a reasonable doubt, she could not have inflicted either injury on herself, and that Ring fatally shot Hicks before turning the gun on himself.

Formella said that if Ring were alive, there would be sufficient evidence to prosecute a first-degree murder case against him.

“We hope that the conclusion of this investigation brings a measure of clarity and peace to the loved ones of Carrie Hicks,” he said in a statement. “This resolution underscores the commitment of the New Hampshire Cold Case Unit. By thoroughly re-examining the forensic evidence, witness statements, and autopsy records, our investigators have finally established the truth behind this tragic loss of life.”

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