The Company Ayotte Keeps

As the old saying goes, “you are the company that you keep”, and for Kelly Ayotte, the company she keeps reveals just how far she will go to win an election. 

In addition to her problematic record on reproductive rights, news has broken in recent weeks highlighting Ayotte’s embracing of problematic list of campaign endorsers, as well as her acceptance of extremist rhetoric regarding education and neglect of common sense labor rules and regulations through her involvement with Blackstone. Let’s take a look:

Ayotte Silence on Supporters’ Extreme Rhetoric

Last month, New Hampshire Republicans, including gubernatorial candidate Kelly Ayotte, were silent in response to a series of social media posts by the New Hampshire Libertarian Party (LPNH) endorsing the assassination of Vice President Kamala Harris and violence against politicians. 

The post, which stated “Anyone who murders Kamala Harris would be an American hero,”  attracted national attention after going viral on social media. Jeremy Kauffman, a contributor to LPNH’s X account that posted the threat, was seen on video confronting FBI agents visiting his home for questioning.

Ayotte’s silence in response to this threat is deafening, and speaks to how she values personal political power gains over speaking out against her supporters’ blatantly problematic behavior. Kaufman endorsed Ayotte in this year’s primary election, and was photographed with her at a conservative event last year. 

This is hardly the first time Ayotte has refused to condemn the problematic actions of her supporters, aligning herself with their extremist beliefs. Earlier this year, Ayotte refused to renounce the endorsement of New Hampshire State Representative Jonathan Stone, who was revealed to have been terminated as a police officer following an investigation into his relationship with a minor and threats of mass shootings and rape against New Hampshire law enforcement. These actions led to Stone’s removal by the Claremont City Council from city boards, with the Union Leader calling for removal from House Committees, after his disturbingly inappropriate and dangerous behavior was exposed. Yet Ayotte remained silent, and she continues to feature Stone’s endorsement on her website to this day.

And Ayotte isn’t the only New Hampshire Republican to react with silence. New Hampshire State House Majority Leader, Republican Jason Osborne, who is a high-profile member of the libertarian Free State Project, is also seen photographed with Ayotte and Kauffman and has not spoken against the threatening post. Lily Tang Williams, the GOP nominee for the state's 2nd congressional district, has also been silent. Williams was endorsed by Kauffman repeatedly, and he solicited financial support on her behalf.

Ayotte Embraces Far Right Extremist in Ad

Following a recent campaign ad, Kelly Ayotte came under fire again for embracing a problematic endorsement. In her new TV ad, Ayotte featured activist Brittany LeClear-Ping — a member of the far-right groups Moms for Liberty and the Free State Project. 

Moms for Liberty offered $500 bounties on the heads of New Hampshire teachers who violated a law passed by the Republican legislature teaching so-called “divisive concepts” on race, gender, or other topics. The scheme attracted national attention while the divisive concepts law was overturned by a federal judge earlier this year.

Local and state education leaders spoke out against Ayotte’s decision to promote LeClear-Ping, raising concerns about how Ayotte would address education issues as governor, as well as noting how this dangerous rhetoric threatens public education in New Hampshire.

“I’m here today to share my concern about Kelly Ayotte’s decision to promote a person who’s attacked public schools in the State,” said John Rist, Former Manchester High School Central principal and state school board member. “In 2021 the New Hampshire mothers for Liberty offered a bounty of $500 on educators teaching ‘divisive concepts’ … that’s just not right. This law gives every student unhappy with their grade an opportunity to report a teacher for their curriculum. This puts a target on every public school teacher in the state of New Hampshire.”

LeClear-Ping joins a growing list of far-right figures Ayotte has aligned herself with, including Jon Stone, Harry Bean, Ken Weyler and Lisa Mazur, among others.

Ayotte’s Lack of Oversight Leads to Child Labor Abuses

This summer, Granite Staters discovered Kelly Ayotte has been a key contributor to New Hampshire’s housing crisis as a board member to the nation’s largest landlord, Blackstone, predatory private equity firm. And recently, under Ayotte’s watch, a Blackstone-owned company was found to have employed over 100 children as young as 13 years old in violation of US labor laws in February of last year.

Blackstone officials specifically pinned the negligence on the firm’s compliance and audit functions while Ayotte served on the audit committee. As a member of the audit committee, Ayotte was tasked with overseeing Blackstone’s compliance with legal and regulatory requirements, including child labor laws. These recent violations raise concerns about the level of oversight exercised by Ayotte and the audit committee during her tenure.

And this is hardly the first time Ayotte’s oversight has led to ignoring cases of abuse. During her tenure as New Hampshire Attorney General, Ayotte claimed ignorance over systemic abuse at the Sununu Youth Development Center, despite evidence her office was made aware of abuse while it was happening. 

Terese Bastarache, a Republican Executive Council candidate for District 4 during the primary, accused Ayotte of either being aware of the abuse happening at the facility — which included rape and beatings of residents — or grossly negligent in her duties as Attorney General.

Granite Post’s Voter Guide is Now Live! 

For the last 9 months, the Granite Post has been delivering factual, relevant, pro-democracy, local news to New Hampshire. Just in time for the fall election season, Granite Post has launched their Voter Guide, which will provide information on how to register and to vote, as well as information on the candidates in key races across the state. 

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Thank you,

Ryan Mahoney

Executive Director