Local writers endorse candidates for office in NH and Maine: Letters

Note to readers:

Deadline for submitting letters related to the Nov. 8 election is Nov. 1. Please keep letters to 300 words or less. Thank you.

Vote Jaci Grote, Dennis Malloy, Peggy Balboni for state rep in Rye, Greenland

Oct. 15 — To the Editor:

There’s a well-known axiom, “The best predictor of future behavior is past behavior.” That’s why I want to be represented in Concord by those with a long history of service to their communities and to the state. Jaci Grote, Dennis Malloy, and Peggy Balboni embody this ethic of service. Jaci and Dennis have been skillfully representing us in Concord for several terms. Peggy dedicated many years to Rye as a long-term School Board and Budget Committee member and now is running for the newly created district shared among Rye, Greenland, and parts of North Hampton. Most importantly, all three of these fine people have demonstrated success at working across the aisle in ways that garner respective from everyone involved.

I’ve had the privilege of serving with Peggy on the School Board and with both Jaci and Peggy on the Rye Budget Committee. Both are true professionals who come to every meeting fully prepared and ready to engage in respectful deliberations for the good of the schools and town. Much of this sort of volunteer board/committee work goes unnoticed until something goes wrong, which is even more reason why I appreciate people like Peggy and Jaci who are willing to collaboratively work behind the scenes for the good of others.

Jaci has been making her mark on the Executive Departments and Administration committee where she brings her management and budget experience to monitor the functioning of state government, especially the complex state retirement system. Dennis has been an effective representative for Greenland, serving on the incredibly important Ways and Means Committee. I wasn’t happy about the redistricting, but I’m thankful that Dennis will now represent Rye in addition to Greenland (Rye folks, remember to vote for three representatives!). Like Peggy and Jaci, Dennis serves his town of Greenland in multiple ways. Important for our region, Dennis is a Great Bay Steward and both Jaci and Dennis serve on the Seacoast Safe Water Commission.

Being an effective representative for our communities is hard work, requiring extensive experience in working with diverse colleagues. We also benefit from having representatives who appreciate how local government works and understand the downstream effects of state policies.

When you vote, remember to vote for three representatives on November 8th and ask yourself who has already done the work that has prepared them to do the work for us. The choice is clear! Please join me in voting for Jaci Grote, Dennis Malloy, and Peggy Balboni for state representatives for Rye and Greenland.

Scott Marion

Rye

Our country is in decline. Vote Republican if you want change.

Oct. 15 — To the Editor:

Under the Biden administration, we now have the highest inflation rate in over 40 years.  We are no longer energy independent or energy dominant, which we were when Trump left office and gas was $1.80 per gallon.

Thanks to Biden's war on fossil fuel, which started the day he took office, our electric rates have nearly doubled. Heating oil and natural gas are predicted to go up 25% and 27% respectively this winter, if available at all. The stock market just finished the worst six months in over 50 years. The average household has lost around $7,200 of income.

Under Biden, we surrendered in Afghanistan, leaving behind American citizens, Afghans who worked with our military, and $85 billion worth of the most modern military equipment in the world. The Democrats also allowed Russia to devastate Ukraine killing hundreds of thousands of people, and it will only get worse.

Trump had almost finished the wall securing our southern border, but on Biden's first day in office, he stopped all construction and totally re-opened the border allowing over 5 million illegal immigrants to enter.  We have illegal drugs pouring in over our southern border at such a rate that Fentanyl is now the number one cause of death in the U.S.

Democrat-run cities are besieged by crime and mayhem.  The Democrats are hell-bent on smearing and defunding our police. Leftist politicians and Soros-backed prosecutors are enabling chaos and undermining the police by letting violent criminals walk free with a slap on the wrist.  The FBI and DOJ have been weaponized against the opposing party.  We no longer have a fair and free press, or free speech. The Biden administration is hostile to God, country, family, liberty and freedom.  They are not about building a better America.  They are about destroying what remains of America.

We must stop this insanity now for the sake of our children, grandchildren, and our country.  Please vote Republican in the Nov. 8 election. It was hard-working patriots that built this country and it will be hard working patriots who will save our country.

John Allard     

Barrington

Vote the straight Democratic ticket this fall to preserve our freedoms

Oct. 16 — To the Editor:

It’s election season again, and we Americans should be feeling optimistic that we live in the greatest democracy in the world. However, I find myself, and many others, increasingly worried and concerned that our fragile democracy is under assault - from both inside and outside our nation. We have some mechanisms to deal with outside threats; but it is the inside threats that concern me the most.

We used to have issue-based dialogues and disagreements about policy differences between our two major political parties. But now, we can’t even get to that point, as one major party repeatedly questions the freedom and fairness of our elections. Incredibly, though, those questions only seem to arise when they lose, not when they win. There is no doubt about their victories in primaries; but, somehow, there is denial of results when they lose.

How can a democracy function under such circumstances? Simply, the answer is: it can’t. And that seems to be the point of the deniers - to cast doubt about their losses and the integrity of our election system when they lose, despite the fact that it is the most secure and fair system in the world.

Repeatedly, we see these freedoms under attack. In addition, we now see Republican assaults on women’s health choices. That party was supposed to be the party of small government with less governmental interference in our personal lives. But it now seems expeditious for Republicans to disempower women when it suits their political quest for power.

I urge you to vote the straight Democratic ticket this fall. It is the only way to preserve our freedoms. Furthermore, we must do so in overwhelming numbers, so there can be no doubt that such interference is not to be tolerated. Only when this message is received, loud and clear, can we return to the days of security in our democracy and back to debating policy, as The Founders intended.

Neil Martin

Greenland

Vote Joan Hamblet for Portsmouth state representative

Oct. 16 — To the Editor:

I am writing in support of the re-election of Joan Hamblet as a state representative.

For the past two years, Rep. Hamblet has demonstrated her support for the residents of Portsmouth’s Ward 3 in many ways.  As a member of the House Election Law Committee she supported legislation that would promote keeping our elections fair and accessible. She has fought against the idea that there is “widespread” fraud in our elections.

She recognizes that in order for a woman to be a productive and healthy member of our society, she needs to be in charge of her health care decisions.  Access to safe and legal abortion is vital to this process.

Rep. Hamblet believes that public education is the foundation of our democracy. To that end she is against diverting taxpayers’ money to fund private schools. She is opposed to restricting what teachers can and cannot talk about in the classroom as it pertains to our rich and complicated history.

Rep. Hamblet supports bills that expand renewable energy, affordable housing and reasonable gun safety laws.

Rep. Hamblet is being challenged in the upcoming election by someone who has called her views extreme and leftist.  Someone who believes that programs helping our neighbors during these trying times are unnecessary and contribute to their “oppression.”

We need more people in Concord who work for us and fight for policies that maintain and improve our quality of life.  Rep. Hamblet served her first term honorably and I believe she will do nothing less when elected to a second term.

Pamela Gordon

Former state representative, Ward 5

Portsmouth

Here's why we urge you to vote for Holly Sargent for Maine LD 147

Oct. 17 — To the Editor:

It is with considerable pleasure and assurance that we urge you to vote November 8 for Holly Sargent, candidate for the Maine Legislative District 147. A life-long resident of Maine, Holly brings to her candidacy a wealth of experience as a community leader, administrative executive, and business woman. Her priorities include supporting the small business community, protecting the rights of women, advancing educational needs, safeguarding the environment, and supporting social justice for all members of our community.

As important as Holly’s background, experiences, and priorities are, she is also a woman of strong character. While she is a very effective leader, she is also an excellent listener, recognizing, valuing, and respecting the views and opinions of others. She is a hard worker, willing to devote the considerable time necessary to be a state legislator. In a world of political division, Holly will work with legislators of all parties to bring the very best to the people of our community and the state. Holly is a caring person with a fervid commitment to serve others.

For all of these reasons, we urge you to vote this November for Holly Sargent for the Maine Legislative District 147. Your vote is important!

Alan and Idy Gitelson

York, Maine

This article originally appeared on Portsmouth Herald: Local writers endorse candidates for office in NH and Maine: Letters