E37: Scott Shepard Wants NH to Ask the Right Questions

E36: The Inaugural Episode of Pitch Talk, with Dian McCarthy

This episode is a recording of a live event from June 18th with NH State Senate District 16 candidate Dian McCarthy. It's the first episode of a 2026 series I'm calling "Pitch Deck". Over the next 4+ months, I want to dive in on a number of the most intriguing, interesting, and important downballot races in New Hampshire. The first 15 minutes are a quick run through the analytics, trends, and characteristics of the district itself. Then, a 25 minute conversation with the candidate, followed by time for questions and comments from the live audience who joined us on Substack for this event. Dian is a longtime resident of the Manchester suburb of Goffstown (the biggest town in a district that also includes Hooksett, Candia, Raymond, and Ward 1 of Manchester). She was a member of the Goffstown School Board for nine years - including two successful reelections, six years as the Chair, and seven years on the town's Budget Committee. This electoral success came despite being a Democrat in a town that has leaned Republican over the past 20+ years. Dian's professional and civic career is impressive, as well. She's been a non-profit Executive Director; the Vice Chair of the NH Juvenile Court Diversion Network Board, where she helped guide the statewide network through a period of significant growth and transition; and President of the NH Breast Cancer Coalition. You can learn more about Dian and her campaign at www.mccarthy4nh.com.#nhpolitics #2026election #newhampshire

E37: Scott Shepard Wants NH to Ask the Right Questions

Scott Shepard is a candidate for State Representative in NH in Strafford 4 - one of the most competitive, "purple", and politically interesting districts in the state...but that's *not* why I wanted to sit down with him. Scott has a Substack, NH Insights, that is approaching the biggest public policy problems facing New Hampshire with a decidedly unique tone. Unlike most politicians, Scott starts with big, fundamental questions about what we actually want as a state - on education, on how we pay for schools, and what we are willing (and unwilling) to trade off in addressing the state's housing crisis. He's a PhD geneticist who has spent time at Harvard; who's been a consultant for businesses large and small to successfully help them merge, become more efficient, and reaffirm their missions. He's taken a thoughtful Facebook account and generated change in his town of Barrington, NH, where he serves in several appointed capacities. And he has very thoughtful ideas about how NH should approach what I call the "Bermuda Triangle" of public policy: Education quality, property taxes, and housing. You can find his Substack here [https://substack.com/@nhinsights?utm_source=global-search]: and his campaign website here [https://shepardfornh.com/] #nhpolitics

E35: NH Democratic Party Chairman Ray Buckley

NH Democratic Party Chairman Raymond Buckley is the longest serving state party chair in America, going back to 2007. He has truly seen it all, being involved in state politics for over 50 years (he started well before he could get a driver's license) - from growing up with the state being a safe GOP presidential win through the 1970s and 80s, through a stretch where Democrats won 9 out of 10 gubernatorial races between 1996 and 2014, to its current unique combination of consistent federal victories with more recent struggles against a state GOP led by GenX Governors Chris Sununu and Kelly Ayotte. Of course, New Hampshire is also famous for our First In The Nation Presidential Primary, more than a century old. In recent years, it has been under much deeper scrutiny by the Democratic National Committee, who in 2024 approved a change in the traditional order. (New Hampshire still went first, but South Carolina was given the DNC's official blessing to be FITN.) Now, Chairman Buckley leads a team making its case (effectively, it appears) that the path back to The White House for Democrats should indeed start in New Hampshire. That decision will be made later this summer, and the stakes are high for a party desperate to succeed President Trump in 2028. In this episode, Ray and I have a wide-ranging conversation about the FITN process; the strengths of NH's case to the DNC; the political landscape heading into 2026, including what other election cycles seem to rhyme most closely with the current Democratic-friendly environment; and then we have a great discussion about the way to win in NH, and what Democrats need to do to build a true majority coalition that includes the suburban voters newer to the party *and* the blue-collar voters who were once the backbone of the party. #nhpolitics

E34: Checking in with Carleigh Beriont

Memorial Day 2026 has come and gone - which means the unofficial next phase of New Hampshire's congressional primaries has begun. Carleigh Beriont is a Hampton Selectwoman, an educator, and a former labor organizer. She's vying to be the primary progressive choice of the six main candidates in this Democratic primary for NH-1. The seat is open, thanks to four-term incumbent Chris Pappas's (D-Manchester) decision to seek the U.S. Senate seat being vacated by retiring U.S. Senator Jeanne Shaheen. Much of this conversation tries to get at answering different versions of the top question activists tell me is on their minds: What is the actual difference between these six candidates? Is it policy, or style, or story, or priorities...or something else? In this conversation, Beriont appears to be making the case that life experiences - and how they shape her leadership style - separates her from the field. We did plenty of politics and policy, including what her specific strategy is for making up the name ID (Stefany Shaheen) and fundraising (Shaheen and Maura Sullivan) gaps between the top two candidates in most polls and Beriont. She makes a compelling case - I hope you enjoy today's episode.

E33: Maura Sullivan

Maura Sullivan is a leading contender for an open congressional seat - New Hampshire's 1st CD - considered one of the most competitive in America. As a first-time candidate for public office in 2018 - running in this same NH-1 the last time it was an open seat - Sullivan earned a strong 2nd place finish in an 11-way primary with over 30% of the vote.In the meantime, she's been deeply involved in state politics, adding to her record of public service centered around her career as a U.S. Marine. In this episode, we discussed plenty of policy, including America's growing wealth gap, the unaffordability of everyday life, health care, and foreign policy.However, I was eager to spend a lot of time getting into Maura's time in the Marines, and the moments in her life that set her on a path that's led to combat readiness exercises in Japan, serving in the middle of the Iraq War in Fallujah, being at Quantico in her first full day as a full-fledged Marine on (of all days) September 11th, 2001, and serving in the Obama Administration. I've known and been friends with Maura for more than eight years...but I still learned a lot in this conversation about what makes her tick, and why she is a formidable candidate with a lot to offer at this moment.#nhpolitics [https://www.youtube.com/hashtag/nhpolitics] #congress [https://www.youtube.com/hashtag/congress] #2026election [https://www.youtube.com/hashtag/2026election] ‪@stevemarchandnh‬ [https://www.youtube.com/@stevemarchandnh] #marines [https://www.youtube.com/hashtag/marines] #democrats [https://www.youtube.com/hashtag/democrats]