Gov. Sununu Lied to Get Elected

For years, New Hampshire’s “buffer zone” law has allowed private abortion clinics to ban counseling, protesting, and silent prayer on the public sidewalks outside their facilities.

As a candidate, Chris Sununu promised pro-life voters he would repeal this buffer zone law. Sununu made this promise while meeting with a group of pro-life leaders including Cornerstone’s current Executive Director Shannon McGinley and former GOP gubernatorial candidate Ovide Lamontagne. Sununu later repeated that promise in a signed letter to Lamontagne, which you can read here.

We now know that this statement was a lie. On May 27, a Friday, Sununu vetoed a bill—HB 1625—which would have repealed the unconstitutional buffer zone law. His veto revealed a depth of brazen dishonesty that is rare in New Hampshire politics. Even Washington, D. C. politicians rarely manipulate and betray their constituents this directly and cynically.

Governor Sununu’s promise to repeal the buffer zone law was not the only lie in his letter to Lamontagne. In the same letter, Governor Sununu also promised to support a “Late Term Abortion Ban.”

Earlier this year, however, Governor Sununu endorsed the original text of HB 1609, which would have returned New Hampshire to unlimited abortion up to birth. Fortunately, HB 1609 was significantly amended by the time it reached the Governor’s desk, leaving New Hampshire’s six-month abortion ban fundamentally intact, no thanks to the Governor.

Still, it now seems that if Governor Sununu promises in a signed letter to pursue any specific policy on abortion, he can be trusted to do exactly the opposite.

Sununu’s endorsement of the original HB 1609 text was both a betrayal and a historic low for any Republican governor. Although Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker is known as a moderate and socially liberal Republican, Baker once wisely vetoed a bill functionally identical to HB 1609. In December of 2020, a strong Democratic majority in Massachusetts’ legislature overrode the veto and enacted abortion up to birth in Massachusetts.

By positioning himself as even more fanatically pro-abortion than Charlie Baker, Sununu earned the distinction of becoming the most extreme pro-abortion GOP Governor currently serving in any state. The Governor will not and should not be rewarded for his deception. Vote against Governor Sununu on September 13.

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