New England College hosted the New Hampshire legislature election forum in the Simon great room for all candidates NH State Senate in District 7, and the NH House of Representatives in Merrimack 8 District.
Eileen Kelly, Tony Caplan, Stephanie Payeur, Natalie Wells, and Sherry Gould are the candidates for the NH House of Representatives.
Payeur is backing local school board decisions when it comes to teaching sexual education in public school. She believes that it is good and thorough.
“I think it would be a local decision among school boards how in depth they want the classes to go,” Payeur said.
Kelly supports legalizing marijuana for taxes and said that the state should regulate it.
“I think that we should be using that as a source of revenue for us,” Kelly said. “I do want to see it regulated so that the state will benefit and receive the revenue.”
When asked about homelessness in NH, Caplan explained there is a housing shortage in NH, and a mental health crisis across America.
Gould emphasized that the homeless issue in NH is much more complicated than anyone thinks.
“Homelessness is not flat, it’s much more complicated,” Gould said.
“We need more control, more affordable housing,” Caplan said. “We need to provide more mental health for people who are in crisis.”
Bipartisan decisions are very important in the House of Representatives, and Wells explained the significance of Democrats and Republicans working together to get bills passed.
“We need more compassion, there’s no doubt about it, because we need to be able to talk to each other,” Wells said.
In the State Senate forum, Stu Greene and Dan Innis discussed the issue of keeping young people in NH.
Innis explained how expensive it is to live in NH as a young adult and the housing crisis is playing a huge role.
“Housing is also a major issue. It’s something we have to pay attention to. People can’t afford to live here,” Innis said.
Greene agreed with Innis and emphasized the housing crisis and the taxes within the state.
“I would add the housing crisis which is critical, and one of the main reasons that we’re driving our youth out,” Greene said. “You get an aggressive tax rate.”
The election for the NH House of Representatives in the Merrimack 8 District and NH State Senate in District 7 will take place on Nov. 5.
