The 2014 New Hampshire gubernatorial election was held on November 4, 2014, to elect the

governor of New Hampshire The governor of New Hampshire is the head of government of New Hampshire. The governor is elected during the biennial state general election in November of even-numbered years. New Hampshire is one of only two states, along with bordering Verm ...

, concurrently with the

election An election is a formal group decision-making process by which a population chooses an individual or multiple individuals to hold public office. Elections have been the usual mechanism by which modern representative democracy has opera ...

to New Hampshire's Class II U.S. Senate seat, as well as other elections to the

United States Senate The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and pow ...

in other states and elections to the

United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they ...

and various state and local elections. Incumbent Democratic Governor

Maggie Hassan Margaret Coldwell Hassan (; née Wood; born February 27, 1958) is an American politician and attorney serving as the junior United States senator from New Hampshire. A Democrat, Hassan was elected to the Senate in 2016 while serving as the 81st ...

ran for re-election to a second term in office. She defeated the

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

nominee, businessman

Walt Havenstein Walter Perry Havenstein (born April 24, 1949) is an American businessman, engineer, and former United States Marine. He was the Republican nominee for Governor of New Hampshire in 2014. Early life and education Havenstein is the son of Kathryn ...

. As of 2022, this is the last time a Democrat was elected Governor of New Hampshire.

Background

Incumbent Democratic Governor John Lynch decided to retire in 2012, rather than seek re-election to a fifth term in office. The Democratic nominee, former

State Senate A state legislature in the United States is the legislative body of any of the 50 U.S. states. The formal name varies from state to state. In 27 states, the legislature is simply called the ''Legislature'' or the ''State Legislature'', whil ...

Majority Leader

, defeated the Republican nominee, attorney and 1996 gubernatorial nominee Ovide M. Lamontagne, 55% to 43%. New Hampshire and

Vermont Vermont () is a state in the northeast New England region of the United States. Vermont is bordered by the states of Massachusetts to the south, New Hampshire to the east, and New York to the west, and the Canadian province of Quebec to ...

are the only states in the country whose governors are elected every two years. On only one occasion since 1926 has a first-term governor of New Hampshire been defeated for re-election to a second term: in 2004, when Lynch beat incumbent Republican Governor

Craig Benson Craig R. Benson (born October 8, 1954
...

.Schweitzer, Sarah (November 4, 2004).
Defeated after 1 term, N.H. governor fades out
. ''

The Boston Globe ''The Boston Globe'' is an American daily newspaper founded and based in Boston, Massachusetts. The newspaper has won a total of 27 Pulitzer Prizes, and has a total circulation of close to 300,000 print and digital subscribers. ''The Boston Glob ...

''. Retrieved on February 6, 2011. Hassan also had and continues to have high approval ratings. An April 2014 WMUR/

University of New Hampshire The University of New Hampshire (UNH) is a public land-grant research university with its main campus in Durham, New Hampshire. It was founded and incorporated in 1866 as a land grant college in Hanover in connection with Dartmouth College, m ...

poll found that 57% of registered voters approved of the job she was doing, 58% had a favorable opinion of her, and 70% thought the state was going in the right direction. For these reasons, Hassan was not considered vulnerable going into the election.

The Cook Political Report ''The Cook Political Report with Amy Walter'' is an American online newsletter that analyzes elections and campaigns for the U.S. Presidency, the United States Senate, the United States House of Representatives, and U.S. governors' offices. Sel ...

, Daily Kos Elections, ''

Governing Governance is the process of interactions through the laws, norms, power or language of an organized society over a social system ( family, tribe, formal or informal organization, a territory or across territories). It is done by the gove ...

'' and '' Sabato's Crystal Ball'' all considered the race "likely Democratic" and RealClearPolitics and ''

The Rothenberg Political Report Stuart Rothenberg is an American editor, publisher, and political analyst. He is best known for his biweekly political newsletter ''The Rothenberg Political Report'', now known as ''Inside Elections''. He was also a regular columnist at ''Roll ...

'' rated the race "safe Democratic".

Democratic primary

Candidates

Declared

* Ian Freeman, radio show host *

, incumbent Governor * Clecia Terrio, candidate for the State House in 2012 Hassan won the Democratic Party primary, held on September 9, 2014, with 94.3% of the votes cast.

Republican primary

Candidates

Declared

* Daniel J. Greene *

, businessman * Andrew Hemingway, businessman,

Tea Party A tea party is a social gathering event held in the afternoon. For centuries, many societies have cherished drinking tea with a company at noon. Tea parties are considered for formal business meetings, social celebrations or just as an afternoon ...

activist and candidate for Chairman of the New Hampshire Republican State Committee in 2013 * Jonathan Smolin Havenstein won the Republican Party primary, held on September 9, 2014, with 55.6% of the votes cast.

Declined

William Harrison Binnie William Harrison "Bill" Binnie is an American industrialist, investment banker, and philanthropist, who is currently president of the Carlisle Capital Corporation,http://www.manta.com/company/mm42n0p president of the media company New Hampshire 1 ...

, industrialist, investment banker and candidate for the U.S. Senate in 2010 *

Jeb Bradley Joseph E. "Jeb" Bradley (born October 20, 1952) is an American politician and member of the Republican Party who serves in the New Hampshire Senate. He represents his hometown of Wolfeboro, New Hampshire and 16 other towns in east-central New Ha ...

, Majority Leader of the

New Hampshire Senate The New Hampshire Senate has been meeting since 1784. It is the upper house of the New Hampshire General Court, alongside the lower New Hampshire House of Representatives. It consists of 24 members representing Senate districts based on populatio ...

and former U.S. Representative * Brad Cook, attorney * Jeanie Forrester, state senator * Ted Gatsas,

Mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well ...

Manchester Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The t ...

* Frank Guinta, former U.S. Representative ( ran for NH-01) * Gary Lambert, former state senator ( ran for NH-02) * George Lambert, state representative *

Ovide Lamontagne Ovide Marc Lamontagne (born 1957) is an American businessman who serves as a shareholder at Bernstein Shur law firm in Manchester, New Hampshire. Lamontagne is a lawyer and a Republican former political candidate who was his party's nominee for ...

, businessman, candidate for the U.S. Senate in 2010 and nominee for Governor in 1996 and

2012 File:2012 Events Collage V3.png, From left, clockwise: The passenger cruise ship Costa Concordia lies capsized after the Costa Concordia disaster; Damage to Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, New Jersey as a result of Hurricane Sandy; People gat ...

* Chuck Morse, state senator * Bob Odell, state senator * John Reagan, state senator * Chuck Rolecek, businessman and candidate for the

Executive Council of New Hampshire The Executive Council of the State of New Hampshire (commonly known as the Governor's Council) is the executive body of the U.S. state of New Hampshire. The Executive Council advises the Governor on all matters and provides a check on the governor ...

in 2012 * Andy Sanborn, state senator * Kevin H. Smith, conservative activist, former State Representative and candidate for Governor in 2012 *

John Stephen John Stephen (28 August 1934 – 1 February 2004), dubbed by the media "The £1m Mod" and "The King Of Carnaby Street", was one of the most important fashion figures of the 1960s. Stephen was the first individual to identify and sell to the yo ...

, former Commissioner of the New Hampshire Department of Health & Human Services and nominee for Governor in 2010 * Christopher Sununu, Executive Councillor, son of former Governor John H. Sununu and brother of former U.S. Senator John E. Sununu (ran for re-election) * John E. Sununu, former U.S. Senator

Polling

General election

Debates

Complete video of debate
October 22, 2014

Predictions

Polling

Results

References

External links

New Hampshire gubernatorial election, 2014
at Ballotpedia
Campaign contributions
at FollowTheMoney.org ;Official campaign websites
Maggie Hassan for Governor
''incumbent''
Walt Havenstein for Governor

Andrew Hemingway for Governor

Libertarian Candidates for 2014
{{DEFAULTSORT:New Hampshire gubernatorial election, 2014 2014 New Hampshire elections

2014 File:2014 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Stocking up supplies and personal protective equipment (PPE) for the Western African Ebola virus epidemic; Citizens examining the ruins after the Chibok schoolgirls kidnapping; Bundles of wat ...

2014 United States gubernatorial elections