United States House of Representatives elections in New Hampshire, 2006
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

The 2006 House of Representatives elections in New Hampshire took place on November 7, 2006 to determine who would represent the
state State may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Literature * ''State Magazine'', a monthly magazine published by the U.S. Department of State * ''The State'' (newspaper), a daily newspaper in Columbia, South Carolina, United States * ''Our S ...
of
New Hampshire New Hampshire is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Gulf of Maine to the east, and the Canadian province of Quebec t ...
in 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 house, lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the United States Senate, Senate being ...
during the
110th Congress The 110th United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, between January 3, 2007, and January 3, 2009, during the last two years of the Presidency of George W. Bush. It was composed of ...
from January 3, 2007 until January 3, 2009.
New Hampshire New Hampshire is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Gulf of Maine to the east, and the Canadian province of Quebec t ...
had historically been a stronghold of the Republican Party. Both congressional seats were held by Republicans going into the election, in addition to most state and local offices. However, New Hampshire gave its four electoral votes to
John Kerry John Forbes Kerry (born December 11, 1943) is an American attorney, politician and diplomat who currently serves as the first United States special presidential envoy for climate. A member of the Forbes family and the Democratic Party (Unite ...
in 2004 and to
Bill Clinton William Jefferson Clinton ( né Blythe III; born August 19, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. He previously served as governor of Arkansas from 1979 to 1981 and agai ...
in 1992 and 1996. Democratic Governor John Lynch, who defeated incumbent Republican Governor
Craig Benson Craig R. Benson (born October 8, 1954
...
in 2004, was widely popular, and defeated his Republican opponent,
Jim Coburn James B. Coburn (born 1944 in Boston, Massachusetts, United States) is an American entrepreneur, former New Hampshire state representative, and the 2006 Republican nominee for Governor of New Hampshire. He was born in Boston, Massachusetts, but ...
, in the simultaneous 2006 gubernatorial election. As a result, New Hampshire is commonly classified by the media as a tossup or battleground state in many federal elections. In this particular election, Democrats were not initially expected to unseat either of the Republican incumbents,
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 ...
(NH-1) and Charlie Bass (NH-2). However, first district Democratic candidate
Carol Shea-Porter Carol Shea-Porter (born December 2, 1952) is an American politician and member of the Democratic Party who is the former member of the United States House of Representatives for . She held the seat from 2007 to 2011, 2013 to 2015, and 2017 to 201 ...
and second district Democratic candidate
Paul Hodes Paul William Hodes (born March 21, 1951) is an American lawyer, musician, and former U.S. Representative for , serving from 2007 to 2011. He is a member of the Democratic Party, and was New Hampshire's first Jewish representative. Hodes was an un ...
raised significant funds and ran more aggressive campaigns than Democrats had in years past. In a surprising upset, both Bass and Bradley were unseated by Hodes and Shea-Porter respectively on election day. This was the first time Democrats had held both New Hampshire House seats since 1915.


Overview


District 1

Incumbent
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 ...
won reelection in 2004 with 63% of the vote. Bradley was a
fiscal conservative Fiscal conservatism is a political and economic philosophy regarding fiscal policy and fiscal responsibility with an ideological basis in capitalism, individualism, limited government, and ''laissez-faire'' economics.M. O. Dickerson et al., ''A ...
who supported reductions in taxes and spending. In 2004, this was the only congressional district in New England that President Bush carried. In a surprise upset victory in the Democratic primary,
Rochester Rochester may refer to: Places Australia * Rochester, Victoria Canada * Rochester, Alberta United Kingdom *Rochester, Kent ** City of Rochester-upon-Medway (1982–1998), district council area ** History of Rochester, Kent ** HM Prison ...
Democratic chair
Carol Shea-Porter Carol Shea-Porter (born December 2, 1952) is an American politician and member of the Democratic Party who is the former member of the United States House of Representatives for . She held the seat from 2007 to 2011, 2013 to 2015, and 2017 to 201 ...
defeated the better funded and party-favored state House Democratic Leader Jim Craig, getting 54% of the vote to Craig's 34%. Shea-Porter supported a
single-payer Single-payer healthcare is a type of universal healthcare in which the costs of essential healthcare for all residents are covered by a single public system (hence "single-payer"). Single-payer systems may contract for healthcare services from ...
healthcare program and increased federal funding for education. Unlike her opponent, she disagreed with President Bush on foreign policy issues and the
War in Iraq This is a list of wars involving the Republic of Iraq and its predecessor states. Other armed conflicts involving Iraq * Wars during Mandatory Iraq ** Ikhwan raid on South Iraq 1921 * Smaller conflicts, revolutions, coups and periphery confli ...
. Polls conducted over the course of the campaign showed Bradley in mid-September holding a 25% lead over Shea-Porter. The trend over the next six weeks, however, showed that lead shrinking.http://www.electoral-vote.com/evp2006/Info/house_polls.html Electoral-Vote.com Complete List of House Polls Just prior to election day Bradley was favored over Shea-Porter by just 5%, within the 5% margin of error.http://concordmonitor.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20061103/REPOSITORY/611030391&SearchID=73262327323571 Concord Monitor November 3, 2006, UNH poll Despite those polling trends, and the shift toward Democratic candidates seen nationwide in 2006, Shea-Porter's victory over Bradley was described by many as "surprising" and an "upset."
Concord Monitor November 11, 2006, "How Shea-Porter pulled off upset"
When the votes were counted, Shea-Porter was declared victorious with 51% of the vote to Bradley's 49%.


Candidates

* Republican:
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 ...
- Incumbent * Democratic:
Carol Shea-Porter Carol Shea-Porter (born December 2, 1952) is an American politician and member of the Democratic Party who is the former member of the United States House of Representatives for . She held the seat from 2007 to 2011, 2013 to 2015, and 2017 to 201 ...
* Libertarian: Dan Belforti


Endorsements


Results


District 2

Incumbent Charles Bass (R) won reelection in 2004 with 58% percent of the vote, even as his district was won by John Kerry 52% to 47%. Bass was, like his colleague Bradley, a self-described political moderate and
fiscal conservative Fiscal conservatism is a political and economic philosophy regarding fiscal policy and fiscal responsibility with an ideological basis in capitalism, individualism, limited government, and ''laissez-faire'' economics.M. O. Dickerson et al., ''A ...
. Bass also embraced
environmentalism Environmentalism or environmental rights is a broad philosophy, ideology, and social movement regarding concerns for environmental protection and improvement of the health of the environment, particularly as the measure for this health seek ...
and pro-choice politics. Bass easily defeated primary challenges from
Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitue ...
Mayor Bob Danderson and 9/11 critic and constitutionalist Mary Maxwell. The Democratic nominee was 2004 challenger
Paul Hodes Paul William Hodes (born March 21, 1951) is an American lawyer, musician, and former U.S. Representative for , serving from 2007 to 2011. He is a member of the Democratic Party, and was New Hampshire's first Jewish representative. Hodes was an un ...
, an attorney. Hodes is a strong critic of the Bush administration, supporting issues such as
universal healthcare Universal health care (also called universal health coverage, universal coverage, or universal care) is a health care system in which all residents of a particular country or region are assured access to health care. It is generally organized ar ...
, deficit reduction, raising the
minimum wage A minimum wage is the lowest remuneration that employers can legally pay their employees—the price floor below which employees may not sell their labor. Most countries had introduced minimum wage legislation by the end of the 20th century. Bec ...
, and an immediate withdrawal of National Guard and Reserve troops from
Iraq Iraq,; ku, عێراق, translit=Êraq officially the Republic of Iraq, '; ku, کۆماری عێراق, translit=Komarî Êraq is a country in Western Asia. It is bordered by Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq ...
. In late September, a top Bass staffer resigned after news broke that a US Government computer from Bass's DC office had been posting anonymous
concern troll In slang, a troll is a person who posts or makes inflammatory, insincere, digressive, extraneous, or off-topic messages online (such as in social media, a newsgroup, a forum, a chat room, a online video game), or in real life, with the in ...
messages to NH blogs. In these messages, "IndyNH" claimed to be a supporter of Paul Hodes who was discouraged by Bass's unbeatable lead and urged other Hodes supporters to turn their efforts to other, more winnable races.http://www.concordmonitor.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060926/REPOSITORY/609260344/1219/48HOURS The Concord Monitor. The Bass-Hodes matchup was considered more competitive than that of Bradley and Shea-Porter, since voters in the 2nd district had sided with the Republican Party less consistently in recent years. Additionally, Hodes raised more campaign funds than the incumbent. Therefore, the 2006 election was expected to be a great deal closer than Bass's easy win in 2004. Initially, Bass maintained early leads over Hodes in most non-partisan polls, ranging from just 7-points in one poll to 27-points in another. However, as the election drew nearer, polls indicated either a slight Hodes lead or a tossup.http://www.boston.com/news/local/new_hampshire/articles/2006/11/02/poll_hodes_slightly_ahead_of_bass_shea_porter_gaining_ground Boston Globe Article, Nov. 2, 2006 Just before election day, Hodes pulled in front of Bass in several polls.http://www.seacoastonline.com/news/11072006/nhnews-ph-por-unh.mur.poll.html The Portsmouth (NH) Herald. On election day at 10:30pm, Charlie Bass conceded defeat to Paul Hodes, who garnered 53% of the vote as opposed to 45% for Bass.


Candidates

* Republican: Charlie Bass - Incumbent * Democratic:
Paul Hodes Paul William Hodes (born March 21, 1951) is an American lawyer, musician, and former U.S. Representative for , serving from 2007 to 2011. He is a member of the Democratic Party, and was New Hampshire's first Jewish representative. Hodes was an un ...
* Libertarian: Ken Blevens


Endorsements


Results


References

{{USCongDistStateNH
New Hampshire New Hampshire is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Gulf of Maine to the east, and the Canadian province of Quebec t ...
2006 File:2006 Events Collage V1.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2006 Winter Olympics open in Turin; Twitter is founded and launched by Jack Dorsey; The Nintendo Wii is released; Montenegro 2006 Montenegrin independence referendum, votes to declare ...
2006 New Hampshire elections