Joyce Craig, Democrat

Residence: Manchester

Experience: Mayor of Manchester (2017-22)

Position on issues

Broad-based sales tax: "Joyce opposes a sales or income tax and would veto them as governor. Joyce recognizes we have to take action to reduce property taxes to ease the burden on hardworking Granite State families rather than passing massive handouts that only benefit the wealthiest residents." (WMUR, 2024)

Broad-based income tax: "Joyce opposes a sales or income tax and would veto them as governor. Joyce recognizes we have to take action to reduce property taxes to ease the burden on hardworking Granite State families rather than passing massive handouts that only benefit the wealthiest residents." (WMUR, 2024)

Business tax decrease: No response

Capital gains tax: No response

Minimum wage increase: "Joyce supported working families in Manchester by establishing a $15 minimum wage for all full-time city and school district employees. As governor, Joyce will continue to support working families by supporting innovative industries, lowering energy costs, opposing so-called 'right-to-work' legislation, increasing the minimum wage, increasing access to quality affordable health care, and combating the housing crisis." (WMUR, 2024)

Encourage local zoning changes for housing development: "We need a governor who is ready to tackle the mental health crisis, the opioid epidemic, and the lack of affordable housing, instead of forcing cities and towns to face these issues alone.

"In Manchester we’re putting forward solutions. We’re partnering with the National Alliance to End Homelessness and focusing on how to increase housing. There are more than 2,000 units in development in our city, including 500 affordable units. I’ve allocated $10 million to Manchester’s affordable housing trust fund, worked directly with developers to incentivize affordable housing, and we’re updating our zoning ordinances to allow more development." (Union Leader, 2023)

Increase funding for child care providers: "Democratic gubernatorial candidate Joyce Craig said Tuesday she wants New Hampshire to invest more in child care and youth mental health ... Craig said public education would be one of her top priorities as governor. She said she wants to expand access to pre-K and leverage federal programs to build out the child care system. 'There are programs, AmeriCorps programs, like that, that we could actually be bringing to the state of New Hampshire or implementing here where an individual is getting paid to learn the ropes of child care,' she said." (WMUR, 2024)

Majority of public school funding through local property taxes: "Joyce first got involved in public service when she ran for school board when her children were in elementary school. Joyce is the proud parent of a public school teacher and knows how hard our educators work to support and educate our children. Joyce knows that public education creates opportunities for our students and it is still one of the core issues that drives Joyce’s service. As mayor, Joyce took action to improve Manchester’s public schools. Joyce implemented the first standardized curriculum for K-12, lowered class sizes, started the state’s first dual-language immersion program, raised teacher pay and increased training and professional development opportunities for educators. Joyce believes that public tax dollars should go towards public education and opposes the state’s runaway school voucher program that is costing taxpayers millions of dollars for private and religious schools. Joyce also believes we need a commissioner of education that believes in public education and won’t undermine our educators. As governor, Joyce will work to strengthen our public schools so that every child, no matter where they live, can receive a quality public education." (Candidate website, 2024)

"Education Freedom Account" program: "Craig said she was 'absolutely' in favor of repealing the Education Freedom Account program, and added, 'My focus is making sure that we have public schools that are quality public schools and any student could go to those schools. And so we need to make sure that we have our public dollars going to public schools.'" (WMUR, 2023)

Marijuana legalization with home-growing, no sales: No response

Marijuana legalization with private sales: "Craig said she’d work with lawmakers to craft a legalization bill that would ensure the products sold in New Hampshire are safe and kept away from juveniles. Her vision for a retail cannabis market is one of small businesses and local control — she's not proposing a top-down, state-run model. Still, she said, a benefit of legalizing the drug is that New Hampshire could have more oversight on testing and quality control to make sure it’s safe.

"She also said a retail cannabis market would create new revenue streams that the state can use to supplement public education, address a lack of affordable housing and subsidize law enforcement training to keep the new system in check." (Concord Monitor, 2024)

Marijuana legalization with state-run stores: "Craig supports legalization of marijuana for recreational use by adults, but isn't ready to say if she favors a plan by Republican Gov. Chris Sununu to sell cannabis in state-run stores, similar to the way the state sells alcohol.

'I’d work with the legislature to pass a legalization bill that works for New Hampshire,' she said." (Keene Sentinel, 2023)

Repeal ban on abortion after 24 weeks: "Joyce Craig is the only candidate for governor with a comprehensive plan to protect and expand access to reproductive health care. Joyce’s first TV ad highlighted Joyce’s personal story of needing reproductive health care following a miscarriage. In states across the country, extreme abortion bans are putting women’s lives at risk. Following the overturn of Roe v. Wade, governors are the last line of defense. As governor, Joyce will codify Roe v. Wade to ensure that Granite Staters are able to access reproductive health care and abortion in New Hampshire." (WMUR, 2024)

Guarantee right to abortion before 24 weeks: "Joyce Craig is the only candidate for governor with a comprehensive plan to protect and expand access to reproductive health care. Joyce’s first TV ad highlighted Joyce’s personal story of needing reproductive health care following a miscarriage. In states across the country, extreme abortion bans are putting women’s lives at risk. Following the overturn of Roe v. Wade, governors are the last line of defense. As governor, Joyce will codify Roe v. Wade to ensure that Granite Staters are able to access reproductive health care and abortion in New Hampshire." (WMUR, 2024)

Ban abortion during 2nd trimester: "Joyce Craig is the only candidate for governor with a comprehensive plan to protect and expand access to reproductive health care. Joyce’s first TV ad highlighted Joyce’s personal story of needing reproductive health care following a miscarriage. In states across the country, extreme abortion bans are putting women’s lives at risk. Following the overturn of Roe v. Wade, governors are the last line of defense. As governor, Joyce will codify Roe v. Wade to ensure that Granite Staters are able to access reproductive health care and abortion in New Hampshire." (WMUR, 2024)

Ban abortion during 1st trimester: "Joyce Craig is the only candidate for governor with a comprehensive plan to protect and expand access to reproductive health care. Joyce’s first TV ad highlighted Joyce’s personal story of needing reproductive health care following a miscarriage. In states across the country, extreme abortion bans are putting women’s lives at risk. Following the overturn of Roe v. Wade, governors are the last line of defense. As governor, Joyce will codify Roe v. Wade to ensure that Granite Staters are able to access reproductive health care and abortion in New Hampshire." (WMUR, 2024)

Protection for interstate travel related to gender, abortion: No response

Stricter gun laws: "Today, I sat down with @SenatorShaheen and @MomsDemand NH to discuss the Safer Communities Act recently passed by Congress. This legislation will make great strides toward keeping our community safe from gun violence by investing critical funding in school safety measures and mental healthcare as well as cracking down on illegal gun trafficking and disarming domestic abusers.

"Unfortunately, HB1178, recently signed into law by Governor Sununu, will make it difficult for our police to work together with federal law enforcement in implementing these necessary safety measures.

"Last month, the City released our Gun Violence Reduction Strategy, a data-driven approach written by not only the @mht_nh_police, but service providers, and community members. The strategy aims to reduce gun violence by not only focusing policing efforts, but by addressing the root causes of crime through positive youth engagement, investments in neighborhood improvement efforts, and building community connections. Read the strategy here: https://bit.ly/3bWR25h." (Twitter, 2023)

Require local immigration enforcement: No response

Climate change action: "So I think we have been failing when it comes to climate and renewable energy. The governor has vetoed many bills that have come before him that would have enabled local communities to invest in renewable energy and that's something that we truly need to look at. You know, when I think about New Hampshire and I think about what we love about this state, it's the natural resources, it's the mountains, the ocean, the lakes that we have. And we need to do everything we can to protect those natural resources." (WMUR, 2024)

Expand net metering opportunities: "Expand net-metering. Allow families, businesses, schools, and nonprofits that cannot meet their power needs onsite to join shared generation projects such as community solar farms and small hydro up to 5 MW that unlock economies of scale and save all ratepayers money." (Candidate website, 2024)

Conditional, affidavit ballots for new voters: "Voting rights in New Hampshire have faced countless challenges as Republicans have focused on passing legislation to make it harder for Granite Staters to participate in our democracy. Republicans have even passed legislation that would require Granite Staters to provide proof of citizenship, such as a passport or birth certificate, preventing eligible voters who may not have access to these documents from registering to vote. As Mayor, Joyce took action to protect our voting rights and help more eligible voters participate in our elections. She implemented electronic voting checklists to speed up voting, translated voting materials into multiple languages, and modernized outdated voting machines. Manchester also ran voter registration drives in underrepresented communities, offered free rides to the polls on city buses on Election Day, and ran absentee ballot programs for senior living facilities. Joyce believes we should make voting easier for all eligible voters and pass online voter registration, no-excuse absentee voting, supports an independent redistricting commission, and ensure that our elections remain safe from interference by improving and updating our election infrastructure." (Candidate website, 2024)