Republicans will hold onto the governor’s office in swing state New Hampshire in what turned into the most highly contested gubernatorial election this year, a showdown that grabbed tons of national attention and outside money.
The Fox News Decision Desk projects that former Sen. Kelly Ayotte, the Republican nominee, will defeat Democratic nominee and former Mayor Joyce Craig of Manchester, New Hampshire’s largest city.
Ayotte will succeed popular GOP Gov. Chris Sununu, who decided against running for re-election after winning and serving four straight two-year terms as governor. [New Hampshire and neighboring Vermont are the only states in the U.S. that elect governors every two years.]
“Thank you, New Hampshire! Ready to hit the ground running to keep our wonderful state safe, prosperous and free. Let’s get to work!,” Ayotte wrote in a social media post after her race was called.
Ayotte, a former state attorney general who was elected to the U.S. Senate in 2010 before narrowly losing re-election six years later, easily defeated a crowded field of rivals in early September to win the GOP nomination, while Craig edged out Executive Councilor Cinde Warmington to capture the Democratic nomination.