NH-Vox Populi (R): Sen. Shaheen (D) crushing Brown & Smith

[Morning in Atlas]

Dominating.

The people of NH must surely realize that Browncare fathered Shaheencare.

[Morning in Atlas]

From what I understand there is no Pub bench in NH. That said, this was still an insane idea from the outset.

I wouldn't go as far to say that they have no bench. In fact, their bench is a bit larger than the other bench. Although they wasted one of their two A-list candidates on the wrong race, they still have a decent amount of candidates there, and more than the NH Democrats do, especially in the second district.

• The obvious name that jumps out, and the best candidate any of the parties have, is Chris Sununu, my Executive Councillor and heir to the Sununu name. He has a decent reputation as a moderate, and he has enough name recognition to hold down his Republican-tilting seat.
• Marilinda Garcia is a rising star too, and would be the perfect candidate for national stardom if she wasn't too conservative for NH-2. She's a fool to have passed on a Senate run - although she may only be a state representative, she's a better candidate than Brown, this race is much more winnable than Kuster's seat, and she would be floated as a presidential contender in 2020 if she won.
• The one name in the State Senate, of course, is Jeb Bradley, the big fish in the small pond, and a former Congressman. You all know him.
• Other than that, you've gotta think Chuck Morse runs for something higher-up soon. He's admitted that his party can't beat Hassan this year, so I'm guessing he will make a run in 2016 for Governor or NH-2 (probably the second, considering I think Kuster goes for Ayotte). That would clear the field for a Marilinda Garcia revival.
• I'd say the best bet outside of the leadership is Jeannie Forrester, a high-ranking state senator from the North Country. She doesn't have much of a moderate reputation, but if you're holding an even seat by over 60%, you're doing something right.
• Former Senate President and LGC head Peter Bragdon could definitely make a comeback too, considering he's only 50, and he's got quite the resume behind him. People should have forgotten about his brief conflict-of-interest scandal now that that's been resolved.
  
  
• Another intriguing option is Nancy Stiles. She's a very skilled politician, and she's been able to mask her various flip-flops over the past two years by portraying herself as a down-to-earth legislator who's "here to listen". She's one of the few pro-gay marriage Republicans in the legislature, but her career might be coming to a short end this year when she faces a strong primary challenge.
• Gubernatorial candidate Andrew Hemingway is also a decent option. He's 33, the former head of the Republican Liberty Caucus, a young business entrepreneur, and is pro-gay and pro-marijuana. He has enough money to make waves, but the only problem is that he's running against someone who he can't beat. Like Garcia, I could see him succeed in the future, but now is not his time.
• Andy Sanborn looks good on paper, but like I said, he has far too much baggage to be a contender above this level.
• Odell has ridden off into the sunset.
• Innis is also irrelevant. While he'd be another "intriguing candidate" and a very strong bet to pick up NH-1, there is no way he makes it past the primary. He voted for his colleague in the 2012 primary for governor... only problem was, she was a Democrat running on an income tax. Thinking realistically, that's just not going to fly with GOP voters.