When state Senate Democrats voted unanimously last March in support of sanctuary city policies, with some senators comparing immigration enforcement to Japanese internment camps and Jim Crow, Gov. Chris Sununu warned they would pay a political price one day.
For Sen. Shannon Chandley (D-Amherst) in a competitive reelection race, that day has arrived. The Republican State Leadership Committee (RSLC) has launched an ad calling out Chandley for her support of the unpopular sanctuary policy, just as Sununu predicted.
“Democrats are on the wrong side of the issue; they don’t know what to do,” Sununu said in March. “Somebody over there better get control of their language, or they’re in real trouble politically. Or don’t. I don’t care. It’s fine with me.”
Dubbed “The Left’s Most Wanted” campaign, the new 15-second spot aimed at Chandley accuses her of being “too dangerous” for New Hampshire.
“Fentanyl is flooding in, and Shannon Chandley is making it worse,” a narrator says in the ad. “Shannon Chandley protected sanctuary cities that shield criminals from ICE and voted against minimum prison sentences for drug traffickers bringing fentanyl into our state.”
The RSLC has pledged to spend a whopping $38 million on ads and outreach targeting several states as an effort to defend or add to Republican legislative majorities in places like the Granite State.
“In New Hampshire, Republicans are working to protect our majorities in both chambers, contesting seats that were decided by only a handful of votes in 2022,” the RSLC said.
The RSLC’s ad campaign against Chandley specifically references her vote against a bill that would ban New Hampshire cities and towns from adopting sanctuary policies flouting federal immigration laws, and her vote against a proposal calling for anyone convicted of trafficking fentanyl into New Hampshire to serve mandatory minimum 5-year prison sentences.
A May 2024 NHJournal poll found just 19 percent of Granite Staters support sanctuary cities, while 56 percent oppose them.
The ad also notes Chandley’s vote against a proposal calling for anyone convicted of trafficking fentanyl into the Granite State to serve a mandatory minimum 5-year prison sentence.
On Thursday, Democrats on a House study committee unanimously opposed a call for mandatory minimum sentences for fentanyl dealers — particularly those with large amounts of the deadly drug — blocking a recommendation in favor of the policy to the full House.
Chandley declined to respond to requests for comment.
The RSLC says state Senate Minority Leader Donna Soucy (D-Manchester) is also on their target list. Soucy is being challenged by former state Rep. Victoria Sullivan.
But it’s Chandley who made the most noise opposing the ban on sanctuary city policies, which prevent or discourage enforcement of immigration laws on people who’ve violated them.
“Would I have spoken up against the persecution of the Jews during the build-up to World War II?” Chandley asked her colleagues as she debated against the ban. “Would I have defended my Japanese neighbors from internment camps, and would I have raised my voice to oppose Jim Crow laws?”
“We have at various times in our history rejected the other, rejected the one who is different from us,” she added. “We have taken actions to demonize and dehumanize the immigrant.”
Some Jewish Granite Staters weren’t happy about her comparing victims of the Holocaust to people who had chosen to enter the U.S. illegally.
Chandley’s Republican opponent, state Rep. Tim McGough (R-Merrimack), told NHJournal voters “deserve to know” her legislative record.
“Her votes on inviting illegal aliens to our communities and her weak stances on drugs endanger our neighborhoods,” he said. “Shannon Chandley has voted to bring the border crisis closer to homes in our district.
“Residents don’t want that.”
McGough, who works as a first responder, added Chandley’s opposition to mandatory minimum prison sentences only encourages more trafficking of drugs like heroin and fentanyl.
“As a paramedic, I’ve treated victims of these terrible drugs,” he said. “And they die.”
“We need secure borders and safe streets. Shannon Chandley’s voting record and public comments prove she won’t support these policies, and that’s dangerous for children and families in our communities.”
The New Hampshire Senate currently leans 14-10 in favor of Republicans. Four incumbents — two members from each party — are not seeking an additional term and will not be returning to the legislature.
Chandley’s district covers four towns in central Hillsborough County and has see-sawed between Democrats and Republicans in recent years as suburban areas are trending more to the left.
After being consistently represented by Republicans, Chandley broke through for Democrats in 2018 when she upset incumbent state Sen. Gary Daniels (R-Milford) in a race decided by just under five points, or 1,156 votes. Chandley, however, lost in her rematch with Daniels two years later by a razor-thin margin of 0.4 points, or just 159 votes.
In 2022 she reclaimed the seat in another close race, winning by 2.6 points, or 729 votes.
If the RSLC’s New Hampshire ad campaign is any indication, an offensive strategy is exactly what Republicans have in store for Democrats like Chandley.
“Our top priority these next few weeks is to defend our GOP majorities in battleground states and the best way to play defense is to go directly on offense,” RSLC President Dee Duncan said in a statement.
