Libertarian candidates looking for a seat at the table

David P. Greisman
Sentinel Staff

In races dominated by Democrats and Republicans, their funds are low but their goals are high.

Like the candidates from the two major parties, those running on the Libertarian Party ticket want voters to know who they are and what they stand for.

In New Hampshire, the Libertarian slate includes candidates for governor, U.S. Senate, the U.S. House of Representatives and the Statehouse.

In the Monadnock Region, those who go to the polls Tuesday will have three third-party candidates as options for the major state races: Susan M. Newell of Winchester, who is running for governor; Kenneth E. Blevens of Bow, who is vying for a seat in the U.S. Senate; and Chester L. Lapointe of Swanzey, who is running for a seat in the U.S. House of Representatives.

Though Blevens says he is aiming for victory, Lapointe, Newell and party officials point to different purposes for their campaigns.

Kenney talks state spending in Rindge

Phillip Bantz
Sentinel Staff

RINDGE — Republican gubernatorial hopeful Joe Kenney held a town hall meeting Saturday in Rindge, taking questions from residents about their Cheshire County-related concerns and delivering a brief speech focused on deregulation of business in the state and limited government.

A decorated Gulf War veteran from Wakefield, state Sen. Kenney, 48, faces Democratic incumbent Gov. John Lynch on Nov. 4.

Kenney stressed the importance of limited government, local control and reduced state spending, during the meeting at the Christian Outreach Church.

Lynch lists priorities for 3rd term

Anika Clark
Sentinel Staff

With residents throughout the state saying they’re concerned about how they’ll heat their homes this winter, Gov. John H. Lynch said he’s already looking at emergency contingency plans to help people pull through.

“I’m very, very concerned about what’s going to happen this coming winter,” Lynch said during an interview with Sentinel editors Thursday.

Lynch said he’s working with the Department of Health and Human Services and local responders to set up shelters for people to go to if they can no longer stay in their homes, and said he hopes to establish a hotline that will help people having a problem paying for their heat.

“I don’t want somebody to be shut off and then they try to use their gas stove or their electric stoves to heat their homes,” he said.

Last month, Lynch helped push forward an action plan to raise funding for the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program and expand weatherization efforts within the state.

All of these initiatives come as Lynch prepares to square off in an election fight against Republican state Sen. Joseph D. Kenney for a third term in the state’s highest office. Although polls show Lynch well in the lead, he spoke of several significant challenges that lie ahead.

Endorsements from two groups, one governor

Compiled from edited press releases

The Professional Firefighters of New Hampshire has endorsed Paul Hodes in the race to represent New Hampshire’s 2nd District in the U.S. House of Representatives. Hodes, the Democratic incumbent, is facing Republican challenger Jennifer Horn.

New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson has endorsed Steve Spratt in the race for state senate District 11, which covers Jaffrey, Peterborough and Rindge, among others. Spratt, a Democrat, will face Republican incumbent Peter Bragdon.

And the New Hampshire Sierra Club has endorsed 123 different candidates.

More information on all of these after the jump.

Lynch, Shea-Porter ahead in polls; Hodes-Horn undecided

Edited Press Release

A poll conducted by the New Hampshire Institute of Politics at Saint Anselm College puts Congresswoman Carol Shea-Porter ahead of Jeb Bradley by seven percentage points. U.S. Rep. Paul Hodes leads his opponent, but with 45 percent still undecided. And voters say they would return New Hampshire Gov. John Lynch to a third term in office Nov. 4 by a 66-point margin.

When asked which candidate they would support in the general election, 42 percent of likely voters in the 1st Congressional District said incumbent Democrat Shea-Porter, compared to 35 percent who said Republican Jeb Bradley. Bradley lost his two-term seat to Shea-Porter in 2006 and this rematch has 21 percent of likely voters still undecided. Another 2 percent of voters said they would vote for Robert Kingsbury.

The NHIOP poll was conducted by telephone between Sept. 25 and 30 among 832 registered voters in New Hampshire, age 18 and older, who are likely to vote in the general election. The margin of error for the entire sample is +/- 3.5 percentage points, and +/- 5 percentage points for the congressional districts, which have smaller sample sizes. There were 411 respondents in the 1st Congressional District and 421 in the 2nd Congressional District. The poll was designed and coordinated by the NHIOP, and executed by Abt SRBI Research in New York City.

NHIOP survey results released late last week gave Sen. Barack Obama a 12-point lead over Sen. John McCain in the presidential race, and put Democratic former Gov. Jeanne Shaheen ahead by 14 points over Republican incumbent Sen. John Sununu in New Hampshire’s U.S. Senate race.