Former New Hampshire Senate President Chuck Morse to run for governor in 2024

Former New Hampshire state Senate President Chuck Morse said on Wednesday that he plans to seek the Republican nomination for governor in 2024, shortly after Republican Gov. Chris Sununu had announced that he will not seek a fifth two-year term.

Morse, who unsuccessfully sought the GOP nomination for U.S. Senate in 2022, has a long record of extremist positions and gaffes, opposing LGBTQ+ equality, climate change investments, and reproductive health care access.

He has been a consistent opponent of reproductive rights. In 2021, he helped enact the state’s ban on abortions after 24 weeks of pregnancy, with no exceptions for rape, incest, or fetal nonviability, and a requirement that people seeking abortions undergo a medically unnecessary ultrasound.

“I’m proud of my pro-life record in the NH State Senate,” he tweeted in June 2022.

In a September 2022 debate, he touted an endorsement from the anti-abortion rights group Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America, indicated he’d support a federal abortion ban, and said, “There is no question where I stand on the issue.”

According to research by the progressive super PAC American Bridge 21st Century, Morse voted to require a waiting period for abortions, backed the Supreme Court’s overturning of Roe v. Wade, and opposed funding for Planned Parenthood.

Morse has also opposed LGBTQ+ rights. According to a 2022 press release from the civil rights organization Human Rights Campaign, as a state legislator he voted not to allow New Hampshire to recognize legal out-of-state same-sex marriages, to allow harmful and scientifically discredited “conversion therapy” for LGBTQ kids, and against employment and housing protections for transgender people. The group also noted his opposition to a 1999 law that repealed New Hampshire’s 1987 ban on gay and lesbian people adopting or fostering kids.

Morse opposed provisions in the Inflation Reduction Act that allowed Medicare to negotiate lower prescription drug prices, telling a Manchester radio station in August 2022, “I’m against the government getting involved in anything to do with our lives.”

He denounced President Joe Biden’s 2021 American Rescue Plan, saying in August 2022: “Let me be clear. Washington needs to stop the spending.” However, he also helped to distribute the funds provided to New Hampshire under that law, supporting the approval of hundreds of millions of dollars for affordable housing, environmental services, and electricity ratepayer assistance.

According to a HuffPost report, Morse voted against multiple bills to reduce carbon dioxide emissions, but claimed in February 2022 that he has personally combated climate change by owning a nursery and garden center.

A month later, after Russia invaded Ukraine, Morse baselessly suggested that Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) and her environmentalist allies in Congress were to blame, telling New Hampshire talk radio host Chris Ryan, “The people that have created this New Green Deal [sic] own the responsibility for the fact that we’re looking at a war right now.”

At a March 4, 2022, meet-and-greet event, Morse told voters that he was playing board games to learn about foreign policy:

Let’s face it. What’s Russia’s next move? What’s China’s next move? You know, one of the things that I pride myself on is I really do love New Hampshire and I really do work my tail off to study budgets and policy and all that. But I went to Washington last week to start to study China and Russia and things like that, because I want to know. I want to — I called one of my best friends and said, “Let’s get the Risk board out and bring your brother, you know, who’s retired CIA down, and I want to know. I want to understand.”

In a press statement on Wednesday, New Hampshire Democratic Party Chair Ray Buckley said: 

“Chuck Morse ran an embarrassing campaign for Senate where he repeatedly stated his intention to sign a nationwide abortion ban. He couldn’t even make it out of the primary, where he lost to one of the most extreme and unqualified opponents New Hampshire has ever seen, despite receiving over $5 million dollars in ads from a Mitch McConnell-aligned PAC.

“We look forward to seeing Chuck have a similar experience in his run for Governor,” Buckley added.

Morse may not be the only prominent Republican candidate in the race. Former U.S. Sen. Kelly Ayotte teased a possible run, telling television station WMUR on Wednesday: “Our next governor must be a tough and tested conservative who will fight to ensure that New Hampshire remains safe, prosperous and free. I look forward to announcing some big news in the coming days.”

Manchester Mayor Joyce Craig and New Hampshire Executive Councilor Cinde Warmington have previously said they will seek the Democratic nomination.

Following Sununu’s retirement announcement, the Cook Political Report shifted its rating of the race from “Solid Republican” to “Toss Up,” dubbing it the Democratic Party’s “best pickup opportunity on the 2024 gubernatorial board.”

Published with permission of The American Independent Foundation.