Kelly Ayotte joins crowded slate of New Hampshire gubernatorial hopefuls

July 24 (UPI) -- Former Sen. Kelly Ayotte, R-N.H., has her sights set on being elected the next governor of New Hampshire in 2024.

Ayotte, who served in the U.S. Senate from 2011 to 2016, announced her bid for governor on Monday, entering an already busy race to succeed outgoing Gov. Chris Sununu.

The Republican posted that she is running for governor because New Hampshire is "one election away from becoming Massachusetts."

"I want to thank Gov. Sununu and Valerie for their dedicated service to New Hampshire over the past seven years," Ayotte said in a statement. "Gov. Sununu is an excellent leader who has worked hard to defend our Live Free or Die values and improve New Hampshire's quality of life."

Ayotte will square off with former state Sen. Chuck Morse in the Republican primary. Morse was the runner-up in the Republican primary for U.S. Senate last year.

Manchester, N.H., Mayor Joyce Craig and executive councilor Cinde Warmington have launched campaigns to get on the ticket as Democrats.

Ayotte was elected to the Senate in 2010. During her time on Capitol Hill, she chaired the Armed Services Subcommittee on Readiness and the Commerce Subcommittee on Aviation Operations. She also served on committees for homeland security and governmental affairs, small business and entrepreneurship and aging.

She was unseated by Sen. Maggie Hassan by about 1,000 votes in 2016.