Race for the 2nd District begins with sharp contrasts

Sep. 15—Rep. Annie Kuster and Robert Burns, the newly-minted Republican nominee challenging her reelection, began the general election campaign Wednesday in sharp contrast.

Burns celebrated his victory in Tuesday's close Republican primary as an "unapologetic conservative," and "America First" candidate in the vein of former President Donald Trump.

Kuster started off a Wednesday news conference invoking the Jan. 6 riot at the U.S. Capitol.

Kuster, the five-term Democratic incumbent from Hopkinton, declared her support for abortion rights, saying pregnancy is deeply personal and complicated as she spoke about her experience as an adoption attorney. Burns has said he supports a ban on abortion after about six weeks of pregnancy.

Burns, a Pembroke business owner who served one term as Hillsborough County treasurer, spent the summer painting himself as more conservative than George Hansel, the centrist Republican mayor of Keene who ran with the support of Gov. Chris Sununu.

Now, observers are waiting to see if Burns will emphasize messages that could appeal to independent and unaffiliated voters or more conservative Democrats, like his vocal support for domestic manufacturing — or if he will double down on the partisan messages of opposition to Kuster and President Joe Biden.

The 2nd District is considered competitive, but it leans slightly Democratic and is almost certainly friendlier to Democrats than the 1st District, said Chris Galdieri, professor of politics at Saint Anselm College. There may not be a hidden wellspring of conservative would-be voters, waiting for a candidate to speak to their needs to head to the polls.

"I don't think going full MAGA against her (Kuster) is the smartest play a candidate could make in the 2nd District," Galdieri said.

Galdieri said he thought Hansel probably had a stronger chance of beating Kuster in the general election than Burns does. Hansel's record of accomplishments as Keene mayor, and more-moderate stances on abortion and his support for the Black Lives Matter movement may have swayed some independent voters — but those stances were not appealing to Republican primary voters. Kuster has an experienced campaign and fundraising infrastructure.

Because of Kuster's fundraising advantage and the Democratic lean of the district, University of New Hampshire political science professor Dante Scala said he wondered how much support Burns would get from the national Republican party.

Burns struggled to raise money for the primary, with his campaign primarily self-funded.

"If national Republicans don't start investing the money, chances are there won't be that many donors to his camp," Scala said.

Galdieri wondered about the general election chances of candidates like Burns, who have built their appeal on being the most Trump-like in their primary fields.

"Can they start talking in ways that appeal to a general election audience?" Galdieri asked. And if they make that pivot, he asked will they lose the voters who supported them in the primaries?

As for Kuster, the challenge may be trying to appeal to those same moderate voters, while doing her part to motivate more progressive voters to turn out in November. On Wednesday morning, Kuster tried to balance both sides, speaking about climate change as well as the need for policies that will lower heating oil prices this winter.

But Kuster spent the most time Wednesday morning reiterating her support for abortion rights — an issue that has energized Democratic and progressive voters since the Supreme Court's decision this summer overturning the Roe v. Wade decision — while framing the issue in terms of personal liberty.

"The government has no role in dictating our private medical decisions," Kuster said.