GOP redistricting effort in New Hampshire is frozen

New Hampshire’s Redistricting Efforts Hit a Wall

The Republican initiative for redistricting in New Hampshire has come to a standstill, marking a significant setback for the White House’s strategy to safeguard the GOP’s House majority in the upcoming midterm elections.

State Senator Dan Innis has chosen to withdraw his proposal aimed at initiating a mid-decade redrawing of the state’s two congressional districts, primarily due to pushback from GOP Governor Kelly Ayotte.

“The governor wasn’t that supportive of it since it’s in the middle of the normal redistricting cycle,” Innis, a Republican who recently suspended his U.S. Senate campaign, shared with POLITICO. “Rather than create a difficult situation in my own house, the New Hampshire State House, I thought it made sense to save this for another time.”

Innis’ decision to retract his bill adds to the White House’s growing list of obstacles as it pressures GOP-led states to consider redistricting. In a similar vein, Indiana Senate Republican leaders announced this week that they lack sufficient votes to push through a mid-cycle redraw in their state. Nonetheless, Governor Mike Braun is still contemplating a special session to revisit the state’s maps. The White House has yet to provide a comment regarding the New Hampshire developments.

For months, the White House has escalated its demands on New Hampshire Republicans to propose a new congressional map, suggesting a “take-no-prisoners” approach that even included the possibility of challenging Ayotte in a primary. Corey Lewandowski, a Trump ally and long-time New Hampshire resident currently serving as a senior adviser at the Department of Homeland Security, hinted at a potential gubernatorial run against Ayotte shortly thereafter.

There remains a flicker of interest among New Hampshire’s Republican lawmakers regarding remapping, as the state has been operating with a court-approved congressional map since former Governor Chris Sununu vetoed the Legislature’s proposed plans in 2022. With Democrats seeking to gain three seats in next year’s midterms to reclaim control of the House, the Trump team had hoped a redraw in New Hampshire could secure them an additional seat.

Currently, both congressional districts are held by Democrats, although the state’s open 1st District is expected to be a competitive battleground next November, even without any changes to the district lines.

State lawmakers indicate they would prefer to have Ayotte’s support before moving forward, but the first-term governor remains unmoved. Ayotte has consistently rejected the notion of a mid-decade redistricting, asserting that “the timing is off” and maintaining that the pressure tactics employed by the Trump team will not sway her position.

“We’re in the middle of the census, I don’t think the timing is right for redistricting,” Ayotte recently told local television station WMUR, adding, “the thing [Granite Staters are] talking to me about is not redistricting.”