Warmington: “We can do better and we must. When I’m governor, we will.”

MANCHESTER, NH — In case you missed it, Cinde Warmington shared in a new Union Leader op-ed why and how she’s fighting to make New Hampshire more affordable for Granite State families. 

Cinde detailed how Kelly Ayotte’s affordability crisis is crushing working families across the state, with rising housing costs, property taxes, and health care expenses hurting Granite Staters “who can’t get ahead” — no matter how hard they work. 

Read the full op-ed here and below.

Union Leader: Cinde Warmington: I’m Fighting for a More Affordable New Hampshire

• Granite Staters crowded town halls and school gymnasiums this week to take part in one of the most basic forms of democracy: town meeting day. It’s a tried-and-true civic tradition where communities come together to determine their priorities and how to allocate scarce resources.

• In fact, it’s a lot like what working families do all the time: sit around the kitchen table and develop a budget from the ground up. But right now, for too many Granite Staters, building that budget is harder than ever. People are being crushed by soaring prices and no matter how hard you work, you just can’t get ahead.

• Here’s what I’ve been seeing and hearing from families across our state.

• Housing costs are through the roof and have climbed to a record high. Young families report that buying their own home is not even an option. In fact, they are struggling even to find a place they can afford to rent. Employers can’t hire enough workers — it’s no wonder given that working people can’t afford to live in the state. And our schools are reporting that more and more children don’t have a place to call home.

• This is an urgent, all-hands-on-deck situation and Kelly Ayotte has only made things worse. She defunded the Housing Champions program despite the fact that 45% of new housing last year was built in communities designated as “Housing Champions.” And she has failed to provide a comprehensive plan for assessing how many housing units we have, how many we need, and how we will close the gap. With Kelly Ayotte as governor, we are completely without leadership and action on this critical issue.

• For those Granite Staters who do own homes, property taxes are skyrocketing. New Hampshire is now ranked fourth in the country for most expensive property tax rates — and that enormous financial burden is shouldered by those who can least afford it. We must stop Ayotte’s private school voucher scheme that is driving up property taxes and stealing from the pockets of working people to pay private school tuition for rich families. And we’re not going to solve spiraling property taxes by imposing a burdensome sales or income tax. As governor, I’d veto both.

• On top of crushing housing costs, Granite Staters are facing devastating increases in health care expenses. Instead of expanding access to health care, Kelly increased Medicaid premiums and co-pays on prescription drugs. This, combined with her unwillingness to stand up to Trump’s doubling of health care premiums, means more Granite Staters are going without coverage. The result: a broken health care system with clinics closing, hospitals under duress, and more Granite Staters going without care.

• Then there’s Donald Trump’s reckless policies, including his tariffs, that are jacking up grocery, gas, and utility costs for families. While governors and attorneys general across the country are successfully beating Trump in court and bringing money back to their states, Kelly has kept silent.

• We can do better and we must. When I’m governor, we will. That’s why I’m running.

• Families are making tough choices right now. I get it. During my teenage years, my parents had to declare bankruptcy. At age 17, I was financially on my own. I will never forget just how frightening that was. But I was determined to be the first in my family to ever graduate from college. I paid my own way, working two part-time jobs all through school.

• I’ve never backed down from a tough fight. As the only Democrat on the Executive Council, I took on extremist Republicans when they attacked our public schools, defunded reproductive health care services, and failed to address our housing crisis. It’s what I’ll do as governor.

• Together, we can build a better, more affordable New Hampshire, where everyone gets their shot at the future. I’ve always believed every Granite Stater should be able to put a roof over their head, feed their families, get the health care they need, give their kids a great education, and still be able to put away something for retirement. It’s not too much to ask.