Some of the top issues discussed by New Hampshire’s gubernatorial candidates included housing, abortion, and illegal immigration. At a candidate forum hosted by New Hampshire Public Radio, former Sen. Kelly Ayotte and former Democratic Mayor Joyce Craig debated these topics as they made their final pitches to voters ahead of Election Day. Craig emphasized her plans to address the housing crisis and criticized Ayotte’s ties to Blackstone, a global investment company. On the issue of abortion, Ayotte advocated for states to decide while Craig called for Medicaid coverage of abortions in New Hampshire. Ayotte focused on cracking down on sanctuary city policies to address illegal immigration in the state.
“We have our own housing needs, even for our veterans here,” she said.
Craig said that if she were elected, she would “absolutely not” allow New Hampshire to follow in Massachusetts’s footsteps.
“New Hampshire is not a sanctuary state, and it would not be a sanctuary state when I am governor,” she said.
However, Craig said she did not think taxpayers should pay for the state’s Northern Border Alliance Task Force, an initiative of the current governor to prevent illegal border crossings into the state from Canada.
She said border security is a federal issue.
“I would work with our federal delegation to make sure that we have the funding necessary to get that done,” she said.
By contrast, Ayotte said she supports Sununu’s efforts with the task force but that “we can’t have a state where we have inconsistent policies among communities on sanctuary policies, because that will lead to a sanctuary state.”
“And that’s where Joyce Craig and I disagree,” Ayotte said.
