New Londoners Take House Seats
New London — State Rep. David Kidder, R-New London, and newcomer Karen Ebel, D-New London, prevailed in a race for two seats in the newly redrawn Merrimack 5 House district, which comprises New London and Newbury.
The other contenders in the four-way race were state Rep. Steve Winter, R-Newbury, and first-time candidate Steven Russell, a Newbury Democrat.
Ebel, a former practicing attorney, currently serves on the board of the New Hampshire chapter of The Nature Conservancy. She was “thrilled” with the election results, she said last night, and grateful for the support she received from voters, who included Democrats and Republicans.
“Three cheers for bipartisanship,” Ebel said. “That’s the way I have approached this right from the beginning.”
Kidder, a Realtor, has served four terms in the House in a district that included New London, Wilmot and Danbury. Like Ebel, he supports abortion rights and opposed Republican-backed measures that would have curbed women’s access to abortion in New Hampshire. Both Kidder and Ebel opposed the proposed constitutional amendment to prohibit an income tax in New Hampshire, citing the need to avoid tying future lawmakers’ hands.
In the run-up to the election, both candidates expressed concern about partisan politics in the House and listed restoring civility among their top priorities.
