One year ago this week, NHJournal was covering two stories: U.S. Sen. Jeanne Shaheen was getting hit by Democrats over her age, and Kearsarge parents were flooding a town meeting to vote down a $27,000-per-pupil spending cap because it was too low.
A year later, those two tales have grown into the biggest political stories of 2025: Shaheen bailing on a third term, and the brewing battle royale over school funding and property taxes.
That’s just one of the findings from NHJournal’s 2025 end-of-year reader survey.
Who was the biggest winner? Biggest loser? What story will dominate in New Hampshire next year?
Nearly 400 NHJournal subscribers responded to our reader survey and shared their answers. (If you’d like to take the survey, just click here.)
We also asked our Granite State Gurus — the veteran political pros and grassroots activists who offer their informed insights on political news.
And so, without any further ado….
BIGGEST WINNER OF 2025:
Gov. Kelly Ayotte
Gov. Kelly Ayotte (R-N.H.)
For the second year in a row, NHJournal readers picked Gov. Kelly Ayotte as the Winner of the Year — and it’s hard to argue with their conclusion. Agree or disagree with her agenda, she managed to get it through the legislature, including her unpopular — and fiscally dubious — Part II retirement funding for cops, firefighters, and first responders.
Ayotte continued to amplify her popular 2024 “Don’t MASS Up New Hampshire” message and jumped on hot-button issues that arose over the course of the year, like banning sanctuary cities and bail reform.
“What big-ticket items did she campaign on that she didn’t get done?” one reader asked.
Half of the survey respondents picked Ayotte as the winner of the year, a two-to-one margin over second-choice Manchester Mayor Jay Ruais.
The Granite State Gurus agreed. Their consensus was that Ayotte is the “obvious” choice.
“The Democrats can’t find anyone to run against her,” one Guru commented. “That’s what ‘winning’ looks like.”
BIGGEST LOSER OF THE YEAR:
The NH Democratic Party
Democratic state party chair Ray Buckley and his crew edged out the Claremont School District and Republican U.S. Senate candidate Scott Brown for the readers’ choice as Top Loser. The most commonly mentioned reason? The party’s struggle to find candidates for competitive races. Sure, a half-dozen Democrats are running for Congress, where Democrats have a nearly perfect record since 2012. But in Manchester, Democrats scrambled until the last day to find a token candidate for mayor (school board member Jess Spillers), and they are starting the year without a single serious candidate for governor.
“Not great, Bob.”
On this topic, the Gurus broke with the readers. Their nearly unanimous choice for the biggest loser of 2025: Scott Brown.
“He went from the likely nominee to a long shot in just one news cycle,” as one Guru put it. Add in the National Republican Senatorial Committee announcing it is “all in for John E. Sununu,” and it wasn’t a great year for the GOP’s 2014 nominee.
BIGGEST STORY OF THE YEAR:
Claremont School District Funding Scandal
Claremont School Board Chair Heather Whitney and attorney James O’Shaughnessey.
Since NHJournal first reported on the incompetence and mismanagement behind Claremont’s budget shortfall, the district has become Exhibit A in the case for education reform and spending controls. The attempts to avoid responsibility, the calls for a state bailout, and the $10,000 “stipend” for the superintendent who oversaw the corruption — it’s all there.
“Public schools in New Hampshire will enter a death spiral of increasing costs and declining enrollment that will drive per-pupil costs up,” one reader wrote. “More parents will opt for private schools, which will accelerate the trend.”
Again, the Granite State Gurus broke with the readers. Several admitted being surprised by the reader reaction to the Claremont case. The insiders’ biggest story?
“Shaheen, Shaheen, Shaheen,” one veteran strategist told NHJournal.
“Shaheen’s retirement is the biggest story in New Hampshire politics, and it could end up being one of the biggest in the country next year,” added another.
Also on the short list: the return of John E. Sununu — and the Sununu name — to New Hampshire politics. And as one political insider noted, “If Shaheen doesn’t retire, (John E.) Sununu doesn’t run.”
THE MOST FUN STORY TO FOLLOW IN 2025:
NH Dems’ Reaction to Sen. Shaheen’s Shutdown Surrender
Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.) at the Eleanor Roosevelt Dinner on November 14, 2025.
The overwhelming choice — and how could it not be? From Shaheen’s daughter Stefany denouncing her own mom’s vote to progressive Rep. Heath Howard’s “Then why did you vote for it?” shoutdown at a state party fundraiser, the response of Democrats to Shaheen’s ACA sellout was “grab the popcorn” time.
As one Republican noted, “The last time an elected Democrat publicly attacked Jeanne Shaheen over a vote was never.”
In second place was Karen Liot Hill and her ongoing scandals, while several Gurus mentioned the budget throwdown between Gov. Kelly Ayotte and state Senate President Sharon Carson.
QUOTE OF THE YEAR
“My kids’ education is crap, and the school management is crap.”
Last year, this was one of the most competitive categories, with President Trump’s post-assassination-attempt “Fight! Fight! Fight!” narrowly beating out Democratic operative Kathy Sullivan’s “Suck it up, Buttercup” and Ayotte’s “Don’t MASS Up New Hampshire.”
This year had one clear winner, and it wasn’t a politician or pundit — but a parent: Claremont dad Zach Greenwood, speaking for many New Hampshire parents, when he expressed his disgust with the public school system his family depends on.
Yet another sign that the education issue is only going to get hotter in 2026.
Honorable mention:
“They have a lot of Sununus in New Hampshire.”
— Fox News host Bret Baier correcting himself after reporting former Gov. Chris Sununu had announced a U.S. Senate run.
“Because dammit, you have the right to drive an ugly-looking vehicle in New Hampshire.”
— Deputy Speaker Steven Smith (R-Charlestown) on ending vehicle inspection mandates.
THE BIGGEST POLITICAL STORY IN 2026 WILL BE…
The U.S. Senate Race
And it’s not even close. The readers and the insiders are all on the same page: The Senate race will drive New Hampshire politics next year. A Brown vs. Sununu primary will be action-packed, to say the least, and some campaign pros believe a Pappas vs. Sununu general election will be a $250 million contest — by far the most expensive in state history.
Interestingly, the second choice of the insiders for 2026’s biggest story is the fallout from Jay Lucas’ arrest for an alleged $50 million fraud scheme.
“When the list of people he scammed comes out, it’s going to be huge,” one campaign veteran said.
