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MANCHESTER, NH – In a race that was almost too close for comfort, Joyce Craig pulled out a win over her opponents, Cinde Warmington and Jon Kiper, in Tuesday’s primary election.
Craig eased past Warmington with about 48% of the vote to Warmington’s 42%. Democrat Jon Kiper had registered about 10 percent of the vote with 75% of the votes calculated.
Over the course of campaigning the tone actually became uncomfortable at times – between not only the two main Democratic rivals, but also from Kelly Ayotte, who easily won the Republican nod from voters Tuesday over her opponent, Chuck Morse by more than 32 percent.
Craig took the stage at the Rex Theatre at about 9:30 p.m. flanked by her family. She was introduced by former Gov. John Lynch, who rallied the crowd of supporters in a chant of “Governor Joyce Craig.”
“It’s so great to see you – thank you, thank you, thank you,” Craig said. She gave shoutouts to her hometown, to her alma mater and her “high school sweetheart,” husband Mike Craig, as well as the rest of her family.
Craig quickly shifted gears, moving full speed ahead toward the November election and her opponent.
“The truth is Kelly’s attacking our city and my record because she can’t defend her votes as a U.S. Senator and her career as a shadow lobbyist for corporate special interests,” Craig said, calling Ayotte the “most extreme anti-choice candidate for governor in this state’s history.”
Craig also criticized Ayotte for “being the only New England Senator” who did not support universal background checks following the Sandy Hook school shootings. Craig also accused Ayotte of leveraging personal connections in Washington, D.C., as a “personal ATM.”
“And if that’s not enough, Kelly Ayotte proudly supports Donald Trump,” Craig.
Craig thanked her Democratic opponents and struck a chord of party unity, acknowledging that primary races “are difficult but they make us better candidates and energize voters.”
