Northeast
Race to replace GOP governor in swing state on tap as primary season comes to a close on Tuesday
NEWFIELDS, N.H. — After six months of contests, the final states hold primaries in the 2024 election cycle as voters in Delaware, New Hampshire and Rhode Island head to the polls on Tuesday.
And grabbing the most attention, the competitive and combustible Republican and Democrat gubernatorial primaries in New Hampshire in the race to succeed GOP Gov. Chris Sununu, who isn’t running for re-election after winning four straight two-year terms as the Granite State governor.
And the race in New Hampshire, a perennial general election swing state, is considered by political pundits as the only competitive governor’s race in the nation this year.
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Republican Gov. Chris Sununu of New Hampshire is interviewed by Fox News Digital on July 11, 2024, in Newfields, N.H. (Fox News – Paul Steinhauser)
The polling and fundraising front-runner for the Republican nomination is former Sen. Kelly Ayotte, a former state attorney general who narrowly lost her Senate re-election in 2016 after breaking with former President Trump after the release of the infamous “Access Hollywood” video.
But Ayotte endorsed Trump this year as he runs to win back his old job in the White House.
WHAT AYOTTE TOLD FOX NEWS ALONG THE NEW HAMPSHIRE CAMPAIGN TRAIL
Her opponent, former state Senate President Chuck Morse, has spotlighted his conservative credentials and his support for Trump. But the former president stayed neutral in the race.
Ayotte, who received Sununu’s endorsement this summer, told Fox News earlier this year that “the path that Gov. Sununu has us on is one of prosperity, one of more freedom. … I want us to continue down that path. I appreciate his leadership and the work that he’s done, and I want to continue his success for this state.”
Former Sen. Kelly Ayotte, the front-runner for the Republican gubernatorial nomination in New Hampshire, speaks with voters at the Hampton Beach Seafood Festival on Sept. 7, 2024. (Kelly Ayotte campaign)
Morse has repeatedly questioned Ayotte’s conservative credentials as a senator and her support for Trump.
“I think there’s a big difference between myself and Kelly Ayotte,” Morse said this summer. “I started as a conservative, and I finished as a conservative as Senate president, and I promise you, I will be a governor that’s a conservative. … That’s not what Kelly did when she went to Washington.”
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Ayotte, pushing back on Morse’s attacks, has pointed to Morse’s unsuccessful bid in 2022 for the GOP Senate nomination, and she added that “I’ve known Chuck a long time, and this is a sad way for him to end his political career.”
Former New Hampshire state Senate President Chuck Morse, who’s running for the Republican gubernatorial nomination, shakes hands with voters at the Milford, N.H., Labor Day parade on Sept. 2, 2024. (Chuck Morse gubernatorial campaign)
The winner of the Republican nomination will face off in an eight-week sprint to the general election against either former Manchester Mayor Joyce Craig or Cinde Warmington, the only Democrat on New Hampshire’s Executive Council, which is an elected five-member panel that approves state agency heads, judges and major state contracts.
Similar to the Republican gubernatorial primary, the Democrat’s nomination battle has also turned into a war of words.
In a state hard hit by the opioid crisis, Craig recently released an ad criticizing Warmington’s past work as a lobbyist for drugmaking giant Purdue Pharma, known for producing the controversial painkiller OxyContin.
Warmington fired back with an ad of her own as she charged that Craig went on the attack to deflect from her record of steering New Hampshire’s largest city through crime and homelessness crises.
Democrat Rep. Annie Kuster of New Hampshire marches in an Independence Day parade on July 4, 2022, in Amherst, N.H. (Fox News – Paul Steinhauser)
Also grabbing the spotlight in New Hampshire is an ugly primary battle in the race to succeed retiring six-term Democrat Rep. Annie Kuster in the 2nd Congressional District, which covers the western half and northern region of the state.
Kuster is backing Colin Van Ostern, a former staffer and former executive councilor who narrowly lost the 2016 gubernatorial election to Sununu.
Former four-term Gov. John Lynch is supporting Van Ostern’s rival, Maggie Goodlander, a former top lawyer in President Biden’s administration who served as a deputy assistant attorney general at the Justice Department and who is married to Biden’s national security adviser, Jake Sullivan.
Lynch originally backed Van Ostern but switched to Goodlander, saying “I think his campaign is one of the nastiest I’ve seen in my fifty years of being involved in elections here in New Hampshire.”
Democrat candidates in New Hampshire’s 2nd Congressional District Maggie Goodlander and Colin Van Ostern take part in a primary debate on June 7, 2024, in Manchester, N.H. (NH Today Show)
The Democratic congressional primary turned ugly with an attack ad targeting Goodlander for past donations to “pro-life” Republicans. There have also been carpetbagger allegations directed at Goodlander, who was born in the district but hadn’t lived in decades, and, through her husband, also has connections to top national Democrats, including former President Clinton and former Secretary of State and 2016 Democrat presidential nominee Hillary Clinton.
Goodland has also faced criticism for going negative first, after an aligned super PAC took aim in an ad at Van Ostern, who enjoys the support not only of Kuster but a number of leading state Democats.
Vikram Mansharamani, who ran unsuccessfully for the 2022 GOP Senate nomination, and Lily Tang Williams, who’s making her second straight bid for the congressional nomination, are considered the front-runners in a crowded Republican primary field.
Delaware also has an open-seat gubernatorial race, as Democrat Gov. John Carney is term limited. Carney, who won three terms as Delaware’s lone member of the U.S. House before serving two terms as lieutenant governor and later won election and re-election as governor, is running instead as mayor of Wilmington, the state’s largest city.
Gov. John Carney of Delaware (Rachel Wisniewski/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
Lt. Gov. Bethany Hall-Long, New Castle County Executive Matt Meyer and National Wildlife Federation CEO and former state Natural Resources Secretary Collin O’Mara are running in the Democrat primary to succeed Carney.
Retired police officer Jerry Price, state House Minority Leader Michael Ramone and small business owner Bobby Williamson are seeking the GOP gubernatorial nomination.
There are also primaries for the open lieutenant governor’s seat and for the state’s U.S. House seat as Democrat Rep. Lisa Blunt Rochester – who made history in 2016 as the first Black person to represent Delaware in Congress – is running to succeed retiring Sen. Tom Carper, a fellow Democrat.
In the race to succeed Blunt Rochester, Democratic state Sen. Sarah McBride is expected to easily secure her party’s nomination as she takes another step in the deep blue state towards becoming the first transgender member of Congress.
In Rhode Island, Democrat Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse faces a long-shot primary challenge from Mike Costa, a former GOP gubernatorial candidate.
State Rep. Patrick Morgan is the front-runner for the GOP Senate nomination and would face a steep uphill climb to defeat Whitehouse in November’s general election in the reliably blue state.
Get the latest updates from the 2024 campaign trail, exclusive interviews and more at our Fox News Digital election hub.
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Massachusetts
Body part found in Shirley, Massachusetts pond, police suspect foul play
A body part was found in a pond in Shirley, Massachusetts and investigators said foul play is suspected.
It was discovered around 5:30 p.m. Wednesday as a group of people were walking along Veterans Memorial Bridge on Shaker Road.
Police said the group noticed something suspicious in the water of Phoenix Pond. The Middlesex District Attorney confirmed that the item was a body part, but would not elaborate.
Police shut down the road and divers could be seen exploring the pond late Wednesday. Authorities were back at the scene Thursday morning.
No other information is available at this point in the investigation.
Phoenix Pond connects to the Catacoonamug Brook, which flows into the Nashua River. It’s also connected to Lake Shirley.
Shirley, Massachusetts is about 44 miles northwest of Boston and around 13 miles from the New Hampshire border.
New Hampshire
NH Senate Votes To Hike Turnpike Tolls for Out-of-State Vehicles
By PAULA TRACY, InDepthNH.org
CONCORD – While Republican Gov. Kelly Ayotte has said she opposes increasing highway toll rates across the state, the Senate voted Thursday to increase rates for out-of-state license plate holders.
It now goes to the House for consideration.
This would be a $1 increase for those who have out of state plates going through the tolls at Hooksett, Hampton and Bedford for out-of-state plates, a 75 cent hike for those taking Hampton’s Exit 2 and on the Spaulding turnpike at Rochester, and a 50 cent hike for those taking the exit off I-93 to Hooksett.
An analysis in the bill shows that this would increase toll revenue by $53.3 million in fiscal year 2027 and go up each year to generate $81.4 million a year in 2036.
Senate Bill 627 passed on a voice vote with two Republicans, Senators Regina Birdsell of Hampstead and William Gannon of Sandown opposing.
Senator Mark E. McConkey, R-Freedom, moved to take the bill off the table and offered an amendment.
He said the last time there was a systemwide increase to the turnpike toll was 19 years ago.
“I am sure we could all agree the cost of operations…has continued to escalate when revenue is not rising with it,” and he noted that with an enterprise fund, the state can only spend what it takes in.
The state has just completed a 10-year highway plan and there was a $400 million shortfall in projects that could not be paid for under the current income.
McConkey said the measure would not increase tolls for New Hampshire drivers with a state license plate.
“Why don’t we ask our neighbors,” to pay a toll increase. “We are getting the best of all worlds,” by passing the bill, he said, including “protecting our residents” and having resources for improvements to the turnpike system.
Sen. Gannon, R-Sandown, asked McConkey if there are any studies on impacts near the border on businesses.
If implemented, McConkey said the state will be the 27th lowest in per mile cost still. McConkey said the bill would also increase from seven to 14 days the amount of time for those with NH license plates to pay for a toll adding there are other states that also have different rates for out-of-state users.
The Hampton toll cost would go from $2 to $3, while Hooksett and Bedford would rise from $1 to $2 for out-of-state plates.
New Hampshire currently has the lowest rate per mile among states with tolls roads.
The governor said she does not support a toll increase.
“We are not going to put a burden on drivers for a toll increase,” Ayotte said. “Families are struggling.”
New Jersey
How much are World Cup tickets? FIFA sells $2,000 tailgate tickets
Tickets for the 2026 FIFA World Cup are highly coveted. Admission to a game can cost thousands and most matches are already sold out.
Here’s what to know, and how much tickets are selling for.
How to get New Jersey New York FIFA World Cup 2026 tickets
Fans can buy the New Jersey New York Venue Series pass starting at $25,800 per person, for admission to all eight games in New Jersey New York Stadium Stadium.
Alternatively, fans can buy premium admission that are available for upward of $1,000.
For instance, the admission to the France vs Senegal game on June 16 ranges from $2,300 to $3,400.
The closer to the final, the more expensive tickets are. Admission for the Round of 16 match on July 5, costs between $2,800 and $6,000.
Anyone interested in a luxury suite should be ready to pay roughly $200,000 for game at the New Jersey New York Stadium. The silver lining is that the price includes admission for to 24 people.
Premium tickets for the final match are sold out.
How can I buy cheaper FIFA World Cup Tickets?
A Last-Minute Sales Phase for individual tickets opens on April 2 at 11 a.m. ET. Tickets might sell out within minutes, given the high global demand for them. Most of the tickets left are category 1 and 2, the most expensive seats.
Price varies depending on the match. As an example the USA vs Paraguay match has seats available for $1,940 and $2,735, according to The Athletic.
Forty out of the 104 matches are already sold out.
What are the tailgate tickets? What is the FIFA Pavilion?
FIFA is selling Pavilion tickets for roughly $2,000. The sporting organization describes the pavilions as “an exclusive retreat located in our secure perimeter immediately outside the stadium. Featuring beverage service and elevated street food-inspired dining available pre- and post-match.
For the price, you get to tailgate a game three hours before the match and two hours after it finishes. It also includes a ticket to see the game inside the stadium.
Juan Carlos Castillo is a New Jersey-based trending reporter for the USA Today Network. Find him on Twitter at _JCCastillo.
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