“This afternoon, the Governor himself admitted that his administration’s own vaccine registry had not been ‘allowed’ to be set up due to the month’s long denial of COVID funding by radical Republicans on the Executive Council and Fiscal Committees. Gov. Sununu is clearly not doing enough to protect Granite Staters, and our entire healthcare system is paying the price”. House Democratic Leader Rep. Renny Cushing
The Democratic National Committee is rolling out a series of trainings for activists in the party to prepare for what is shaping up to be a difficult and consequential election year ahead. We know the kind of country the Republicans want, we have seen it in a microcosm in New Hampshire. A government which goes out of its way to make the high hats of society more comfortable while ignoring the needs of the common every day person.
We have a duty as Democrats, especially given the monumental shoulders we stand on, to beat the Republicans in November. Please consider attending one of the trainings laid out in this email, attend the North County and Lakes Region Convention, and as you’re enjoying your holiday season, consider a note of thanks for the great Democrats of the past who have advanced the cause of Democracy and Equality that we enjoy in our times.
Not only do we have the Infrastructure Bill funding coming in, we have the American Rescue Plan Funds coming due. Remember that?
Welcome to DISTOPIA, a New Hampshire where everything is upside down, where radical groups encouraged by Republican law makers offer bounties on public school teachers who dare teach whatever the Republican inconsistent and ever changing fever dream of what they think “Critical Race Theory” is this week, ignore the stress that the pandemic has put on working people of New Hampshire and give up all efforts to end it so we can move on; or go back to the 1950s where you can waste energy to a faretheewell with no sense of efficiency or maybe have a hand in saving the planet.
Get outraged and then get to work!
Last week the Special Committee on Redistricting held two hearings on their proposed redistricted maps for all the districts, ignoring testimonies, requests and pleas of district voters, and created the worst congressional district they possibly could, one that puts Nashua and Portsmouth in the same district and makes you drive to Mount Washington to get from one to the other.
On Friday, the Public Utilities Commission denied what would have been the state’s most ambitious triennial energy efficiency plan to date.
If this is not enough, tomorrow, Tuesday, November 16 at 10 a.m., the Education Committee is hearing nongermane amendment 2021-2239h to HB 255, which prohibits Covid vaccine mandates.
We cannot stress how important it is to beat the Republicans in 2022, not just so we can put an end to their disintegration of the State of New Hampshire, but also for us to Build Back Better.
Ann and Josh
You have no doubt heard the final Republican redistricting maps have been drawn and there has been strong reaction across the State. This is pure, unadulterated gerrymandering at its worst. We have to react.
This week there will be two sessions, one on Tuesday at 10 am, and one on Wednesday at 5 pm for comments. You will be able to watch but not participate (aka testify) via youtube. You may attend in person to testify, or you can submit your testimony online, or send it to someone to read in the session.
If you are going to testify in person (THANK YOU!!!)
Upload your testimony before or after you testify:
http://gencourt.state.nh.us/house/committees/committee_websites/Redistricting_2021/default.aspx–
If you are going to testify just in writing:
Upload your testimony before or after you testify: http://gencourt.state.nh.us/house/committees/committee_websites/Redistricting_2021/default.aspx
Send an email to the committee:
HouseSpecialCommitteeOnRedistricting@leg.state.nh.us with your testimony attached and explain your reason for not coming in person: Concern for COVID, inconsiderate members of the committee not wearing masks, too far away. Share you are not too pleased about not having a Zoom access to be able to testify remotely!
This Sunday, November 7, @6 pm, Open Democracy will review all the maps with their FAIR MAPS mapping teams and will help anyone with their testimony for Tuesday/Wednesday. You can register here for the Sunday Zoom @ 6 pm
https://www.opendemocracyaction.org/mapathonreview1107
Here is the link to the Open Democracy analysis on the proposed Congressional Map.
https://www.opendemocracynh.com/redistricting/USCongressionalMapAnalysis.pdf
Here is the link to view all the proposed maps, by both the Majority and the Minority.
http://www.gencourt.state.nh.us/house/committees/committee_websites/Redistricting_2021/plans.aspx
And finally, if you are not convinced this is egregious, read The New Hampshire Bulletin article on the proposed overhaul of the state’s congressional district.
Please join on Sunday @6 pm, even if you can’t testify next week, and hear what’s in store for Grafton.
And what a week it was! Redistricting listening session, voter outreach, Women’s March, all in Grafton County! Here is the GCD’s latest newsletter. https://mailchi.mp/ba9dbbfb800b/end-of-july-10451992.
If you enjoyed it, you can sign up for it here: http://eepurl.com/gCr-75
Thanks to co-organizers Nancy Graham and Kari Millstein for bringing us together on the Lebanon Green for the Grafton County Women’s March this Saturday.
Over 100 people showed up despite the threat of showers and listened to our local legislators read letters from Senators Hassan and Shaheen, and Congresswoman Kuster in support of the Women’s March. Rally goers were invited up to share why this event for reproductive rights and abortion justice was so important to them. Their stories were powerful and spoke to the personal and generational impact anti-abortion laws had had on themselves and their families long after.
Watch Christian Avard’s short video of the march around the green.
ACTION: Email joseph.d.kenney@nh.gov, your Executive Councilor, to reinstate funding for healthcare contracts with Planned Parenthood and two other family planning providers.
Grafton County welcomed members of the Special Committee on Redistricting to the County courthouse on Tuesday.
Thanks to those who held signs out front and to those who offered testimony. It was a tremendous group effort.
Open Democracy, a non-partisan not-for-profit group, also brought some of their new FAIR MAPS. Below is the link to their material. Scroll down to see the comparative maps 2010-2020.
http://gencourt.state.nh.us/remotecommittee/redistricting/showtestimony.aspx?&id=96685
You can listen here to the testimonies of Grafton County residents; it starts at the first testimony: https://youtu.be/AeC6IKny_Pg?t=858
Then on Thursday, the Redistricting Committee had a committee meeting where they discussed the pros and cons of the ideal number of representatives and the challenges of redistricting when city wards have not yet been finalized. David Andrews of Open Democracy Action presented the method he used to maximize the number of single-town districts as required by the constitution. Here is the InDepthNh article:
http://indepthnh.org/2021/09/30/restricting-committee-sets-house-seats-at-400/
ACTON: Email the Special Committee on Redistricting members, and ask the Committee to hold another round of hearings AFTER maps are drawn for the public to react and offer input directly to the committee.
Group email:
HouseSpecialCommitteeOnRedistricting@leg.state.nh.us
Or list of committee members:
http://gencourt.state.nh.us/house/committees/committeedetails.aspx?id=1532
The Voter Outreach Committee of Grafton County Dems held a workshop for participants in their deep canvassing project. Meeting at Lakeside Park in Enfield, a dozen people reviewed canvassing strategies to reach infrequent voters and practiced conversation in role-playing exercises.
The pilot project is underway in Enfield, Canaan and Lebanon this fall, aiming to develop a model for voter engagement that can be used throughout Grafton County in the future.
This was the fourth workshop for the Voter Outreach team. The first two workshops were on Zoom, and the third and fourth were held outside under the new Lakeside Park pavilion in Enfield.
Thanks to the team led by Martha Rich, and the many volunteers who showed up in all the workshops!
