Ayotte was endorsed by old Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin and won a meagre mastery over Ovide Lamontagne, whose dyed in the wool credentials and courting of the tea group pulled him assiduous in the irrefutable days of the campaign. Lamontagne has until 5 p.m. to conclude whether he'll undertake a communicate because the margin of success fell within 1.5 percent of the sum up votes cast.
The secretary of state's task says Ayotte got 53,044 votes and Lamontagne 51,377 — a boundary of 1,667 votes in a get a move on with 138,908 downright votes cast. His compete advisers have said he's still bearing in mind whether to invite the recount. One could begin as early as 8 a.m. Thursday and could be done by Saturday, said David Scanlan, the agent secretary of state.
The title-holder hopes to abide standoffish GOP Sen. Judd Gregg's instal and self-respect Democratic nominee Paul Hodes, who was unopposed. Ayotte, 42, of Nashua, won the favour from Palin, who calls her a "Granite Grizzly.
" Ayotte prostrate more than $2 million on her anti-Democrat, anti-federal spending campaign. Palin, the recent transgression presidential nominee, recorded a ring messages to voters that started Sunday, praising Ayotte as "the literal conservative" — a screen Lamontagne had tried to insist as his throughout his campaign. Lamontagne's two former vote bids were unsuccessful. His recent pour was nearly the same to his victory over quondam U.S. Rep. Bill Zeliff for the 1996 GOP gubernatorial nomination, but Democratic U.S. Sen. Jeanne Shaheen conquer him to seizure the pre-eminent of her three two-year terms as governor.
Lamontagne failed in a GOP germinal c in 1992 to unseat Zeliff in the 1st District. Lamontagne closed lustful in the conclusive days of the race, in the face spending only $400,000. Lamontagne, 52, counted on reactionary groups, not money, to come the nomination. "It's not how much boodle you have; it's the message," Lamontagne said Tuesday night. The Republicans gone more than $9.5 million for the unforeseen to honour Hodes, 59, of Concord.
Despite being unopposed, Hodes all in $2.5 million to stroke up champion to try to gain the seat. The spending totals will start after final primary stand finance reports are filed with the Federal Elections Commission. Multimillionaire businessman Bill Binnie, who used up more than $5 million out of his own hollow pushing his jobs agenda, received 19,503 votes, and conceded along with millionaire businessman Jim Bender, who got 12,609 votes.
Hodes said Tuesday tenebrosity that the Republican agenda is "extreme, cardinal and front wing." He said Republicans would rip off the fatherland feeble-minded into the scrape from which the polity is struggling to force out. "I'm uninterrupted for the kinfolk of New Hampshire.
I don't have to yard against anyone," Hodes said.
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