CONCORD, N.H. — Former U.S. Sen. Kelly Ayotte was sworn as the 83rd governor of New Hampshire on Thursday, promising to bring people together and prodding young people to “step up and contribute.”
“I am going to be a governor for you, whether you’re a Republican, Democrat, independent, you name it. Our state is so much bigger than a party or an ideology,” she said in remarks prepared for delivery. “Good government knows no party, so let’s show folks that even when partisanship is at a fever pitch, we can set a different example.”
Ayotte succeeds fellow Republican Chris Sununu, whose decision against seeking a fifth two-year term set up on one of the most competitive gubernatorial races in the country. Promising to continue Sununu’s anti-tax, pro-business economic policies, Ayotte defeated five opponents in September’s GOP primary and Democratic former Manchester Mayor Joyce Craig in the November election.
In her inaugural speech, Ayotte said she would keep the state on a prosperous path but warned that belt-tightening would be necessary as lawmakers write the next two-year budget.
“We are going to have to look to find better ways to do things with fewer dollars,” she said. “Just like that family making hard decisions, there’s things we can’t skimp on — protecting our most vulnerable and serving those most in need.”
Ayotte is the third woman to be elected governor of New Hampshire, following Democrats Jeanne Shaheen and Maggie Hassan, both of whom are now U.S. senators. They were the first and second women in the nation to serve in the Senate after being governor. Ayotte is the first woman to do so in reverse, according to Eric Ostermeier, a research fellow at the University of Minnesota and author of the Smart Politics news site.
While more than 150 sitting or former governors have become senators, Ayotte is among just 23 sitting or former senators elected governor since 1900, Ostermeier said. In an interview in October, Ayotte said that experience will serve her well.
“Not only do I understand how Washington works, but also how to fight for New Hampshire. I still have relationships there, across the aisle, with important people making decisions in Washington,” she said. “So I do feel like it does broaden my skill set as governor doing this in reverse.”
A narrow loss to Hassan in 2016 ended Ayotte’s tenure in Washington after one term. Before that, Ayotte spent five years as the state’s attorney general, and she often highlighted her past as a prosecutor during her campaign.
She repeated that Thursday, saying her top priority remains keeping the state safe. She also cited the state’s housing crisis as a top issue she plans to tackle, and she praised Republicans for expanding the state’s school voucher program. Without offering details, she also announced plans to ban cellphones in schools.
“Screens are negatively impacting our learning environments, drawing students’ attention away from their classes, and becoming a barrier for teachers to do their jobs,” she said. “No more.”
Ayotte said she looks forward to talking to students visiting the Statehouse and urging them to embrace public service.
“If we don’t teach our kids about it, they aren’t going to learn it,” she said. “It is so important to root our lives in something bigger than ourselves, and it is critical to the health of our state and our communities that our next generation step up and contribute.”
