Democrats gain seats in Laconia, Meredith Statehouse races

Belknap County is arguably one of the most red counties in New Hampshire. Despite this, Democrats took victories for three seats in Laconia and Meredith. Democrat Matt Coker won a House seat in Meredith in his first-ever campaign, while in Laconia, Democrats David Huot and Charlie St. Clair defeated Republican incumbents Reps. Dawn Johnson and Richard Littlefield. 

Laconia Republicans Rep. Mike Bordes and Steven Bogert secured victory, leading to an even split between Democrats and Republicans in House District 5. 

Democrat victor and former representative St. Clair expressed a rosy outlook regarding the state’s election results. 

“Overall, I’m very happy that both Sen. [Maggie] Hassan and Congressman [Chris] Pappas both won reelection. That pleases me to no end,” St. Clair said. “As far as House seats, for me in my position, my thing was I had an awful lot of people out there working the crowd and doors, and I certainly appreciate that, because the ground troops did a really good job getting out the vote.”

St. Clair shared that once he’s back at the Statehouse, he’d like to return to his previous seat on the Transportation Committee. 

“I have a lot of questions on projects [that were] supposed to be done two years ago [in the transportation committee] and I will also be listening to the residents of Laconia and their concerns and following their direction.”

For St. Clair and other candidates this year, there was an emphasis on placing constituents above party lines and demands.

“I always encourage people not to vote by party but on the individual,” St. Clair said. “I think there are way too many that vote by party. They do themselves, the city and state a disservice when they do that.”

St. Clair also thanked election officials and described the high voter turnout as “wonderful.”

“No matter who they voted for, I think that speaks well for the city,” St. Clair said.

“Laconia spoke well,” Bordes said after thanking voters and poll workers. “I look forward to working with the new representatives collaboratively and see how we can move forward on issues in Laconia.”

Bordes said one of his chief priorities on a county level is voting in new leadership for the county delegation, and getting more nominees for the Gunstock Area Commission.

“As for the state level, we have to find out who takes control of the Statehouse. That’s up in the air right now,” he said.

Bordes stated he was not surprised that two Democrats won in Ward 5. “That was kind of how I saw things talking with constituents and making phone calls,” he said. “It appeared to be leaning that way in my view, so it wasn’t a shock.”

Bogert emphasized a commitment to communication and transparency with voters.

“As far as any of my goals, it’s a little early yet for that,” said Bogert, Ward 5’s other Republican. “I've got to see what bills are out there approaching us once we’re sworn in in January so we can see what's going on. I want to show my support for the city of Laconia by doing anything I can help with at the Concord level.”

Bogert expressed interest in working on the new proposed development for the State School property.

“We need to have those multi-price-point homes so that we have homes for everybody,” Bogert said of the project, which proposed 1,300 housing units. “That’s something I’ve already been in discussion with the city. I’d like to support that because the council is looking for different price points for the homes. We need that.”

Littlefield was defeated by a small margin, but said there was a good chance he’d return to the ballot in 2024. 

“I’m a little bummed out that I lost by a little less than 40 votes,” Littlefield said. “But the will of the voter was what it was.” 

Despite his loss, Littlefield was excited about the high turnout for this year’s midterms. 

“That’s democracy in action,” Littlefield said. “The parties see their worst losses and biggest gains during midterms. Here in Belknap County, we just happened to be on the losing end, but I think that 2024 stands to be a lot better.” 

When it came to state races, Littlefield wasn’t surprised that Gov. Chris Sununu held onto his title, but said he thought the state “wasn’t ready to let go of the status quo” in regard to the Senate and House races. 

“It’s really a good thing to see that people are willing to take the time out of their day and do their civic duty,” Littlefield said. 

Democrat Wood was also defeated in his Ward 5 bid, but was still happy with the overall outcome.

“I was pleased we picked up two seats in Laconia for the Democrats and one in Meredith. It was a very interesting time,” Wood said. “I think the most important part of it was that we had some good times, made some new friends and built up some ideas and thoughts and hopefully some momentum that will help us keep things moving forward.”

District 2 race in Meredith

In Meredith’s House District 2 race, Coker and Republican Lisa Smart, also in her first bid for office, won the two seats. Officially, the race was between Coker, fellow Democrat Sandra Mucci and Republicans Lisa Smart and Cynthia Creteau-Miller. However, defeated Republican primary candidate Jeanne Tofts ran an aggressive write-in campaign, splitting the Republican vote by 300 points, a move Creteau-Miller blamed for her narrow loss. 

“It was only 204 votes between first and fourth place," she said.

Toft’s campaign materials described her opponents as “phony conservatives,” and was blamed by Republican bloggers for a partial Democrat victory in Meredith. 

“I knew it was going to be a reach running as a Democrat, but our community rewards people who are authentic, and most people who got to know me and heard my message, that connected,” Coker reflected. “I think this disunity amongst Republicans in the area helped me. I think people are tired of it. People didn't like the infighting that was happening, that was blow-off from the Gunstock debacle. The community was tired of it, and that probably gave me a bit of an edge I wouldn’t have had otherwise.”

Moving forward, Coker says he was happy his message connected so well with voters.

“That gives me hope that bipartisanship and moderation are still alive in our community and something that most people are looking for,” Coker said. "Especially with a split house, it’s important we have bipartisanship. You’re going to have to work across party lines to get stuff done.” 

Coker listed affordable housing and energy diversification as his key priorities. 

“I’d like to look at the state level to see how we can help towns and communities develop affordable housing in unique ways,” Coker said. “I’m not ready to get rid of fossil fuels tomorrow, but the more energy sources we have, market forces will make things cheaper. We need to modernize our infrastructure to accommodate that.”

Creteau-Miller praised Coker as a moderate, middle-of-the-road person. 

“I stood 15 hours with him yesterday,” Creteau-Miller said. “He’s going to be a good representative for Meredith.”

Fellow Democratic candidate Mucci also praised Coker, emphasizing his youthful energy and drive. Mucci noted that if it hadn’t been for Tofts splitting the Republican vote, neither she nor Coker would have won.

Mucci and her late husband were among the first Democrats to place their names on the Meredith ballot over a decade ago. Since then, Mucci said things have changed. 

“It’s kind of come a long way,” Mucci said. “The amount of enthusiasm on the Democrat side was so different from what it used to be.” 

Mucci expressed some regret for not making the cut.

“I was a well-qualified candidate, very familiar with the issues, in tune with the region and so on,” Mucci said. “It didn’t seem to make a difference. That’s not what people were interested in. It’s still party line.”

Mucci said that after turning 71, it’s unlikely she’ll run again. Instead, she plans to pursue writing.

“I’ll just say this,” Mucci said. “I’ve already recycled my signs.” 

Creteau-Miller said she would likely never run for office again after her experience on the campaign trail this year. 

“Running a campaign was exhausting,” she said. “I understand why people don't want to run now. I understand the brutality, and misinformation is spread about you which causes disinformation, which people believe then spread to others. It's just a shame.”

Creteau-Miller added that she felt so disenfranchised about her party, that she was re-registering as an independent. Although she said she doesn’t wish to run for office, she’s still interested in being considered for the Gunstock Area Commission. 

“Gunstock is in better hands now,” Creteau-Miller said. “I might send in my resume again and apply for the GAC. That's what I wanted to do originally.”