Incumbent Congresswoman Annie Kuster is taking the gloves off in the Democratic primary to succeed her in New Hampshire’s Second Congressional District, pounding Maggie Goodlander as a carpetbagger with a problematic record on abortion.
Kuster was the first Granite State Democrat to endorse former Executive Councilor Colin Van Ostern in the NH-02 primary, and she featured prominently in his first TV ad.
But this new ad is a departure for the usually low-key Kuster. “Out-of-state money is trying to buy our election, and we’re not going to have it,” she says in the spot that dropped Sunday.
“The truth is Maggie Goodlander hasn’t lived in our district for decades, and she gave thousands to pro-life Republicans. Now she’s making false attacks on Colin with a deceptive campaign to buy a seat in Congress.
“Let’s send New Hampshire candidates to Washington, not the other way around,” Kuster concludes.
The new ad was launched in response to an attack by a pro-Goodlander group accusing Van Ostern of accepting donations from PACs after pledging not to. According to the ad, run by Vote Vets, Van Ostern “promised he wouldn’t take corporate PAC money, called them bribes, but he’s been caught taking over $50,000.”
In fact, Van Ostern has not accepted any PAC donations, and the ad is referring to corporate contributions he accepted when he ran for governor in 2016. (State laws allow direct corporate donations.). Lawyers for Van Ostern’s campaign sent a cease-and-desist letter on Aug. 20 to WMUR regarding the Vote Vets ad, specifically citing this information.
While hard-hitting primaries are common among Granite State Republicans, their Democratic counterparts have a reputation for largely avoiding contentious contests. Kuster’s decision to throw down on Goodlander may reflect frustration over D.C. Democrats (Goodlander has been endorsed by Hillary Clinton) attempting to override Kuster’s choice of a successor.
However, it may also reflect the accuracy of public polling showing Goodlander with a 10-point lead.
Goodlander was born in Nashua to the prominent, politically active Tamposi family, but she hasn’t cast a vote as a resident of the district since at least 2008 — and there are questions about that mail-in ballot as well. In fact, she had to rent a place in Nashua to become a resident of the Second District.
According to Axios, which first reported on the Kuster ad, the “pro-life Republicans” line references a 2020 Goodlander donation to North Carolina Republican Dan Driscoll and “former Rep. Justin Amash, who was an independent at the time.”
Goodlander’s June 30 report showed more than $1.5 million raised, while Van Ostern had raised just over $1 million.
But many Granite State political observers believe the deciding factor in the primary is likely to be one that can’t be impacted by campaign ads: Sex.
Goodlander is openly playing the gender card, urging voters to back her because she’s a woman.
“I think representation matters. The House of Representatives is less than 30 percent women,” Goodlander said during a recent radio debate.
Ironically, Kuster is one of the founders of the “Elect Democratic Women” PAC.
