Don Bolduc, the Republican nominee for Senate in New Hampshire, where he is hoping to unseat Sen. Maggie Hassan (D), faced apparent laughter from a debate audience this week when he brought up conspiracy theories about the 2020 presidential election.
It would be constructive if some of these people stopped obsessing over imaginary fairy tales and instead began focusing on real-world policy issues, but it’s difficult to have any kind of remotely level discussion with those who insist an imaginary widespread scheme to change the outcome of the 2020 presidential race at least may have happened and seem more interested in scoring points on culture war issues like abortion, no matter who gets hurt. “We need to make sure that school buses loaded full with people at the polls don’t come in and vote, and we need to make sure that the 10,000 people that show up on same day without an ID card actually come back and prove [their residency],” Bolduc said. Laughter isn’t audible in footage from the scene, but Bolduc seemingly heard some and reacted, as noted in news reports.
“You can laugh about it, but people in New Hampshire aren’t laughing about it,” Bolduc said, turning to the crowd. To be clear, the debate was taking place in New Hampshire, so people in New Hampshire were actually laughing. “This is a fundamental freedom that I was sent to other countries to make sure happened,” Bolduc said. (He’s a veteran.) According to a report from CNN, Bolduc also directly challenged someone in the audience wearing a mask with a message critical of his stance on abortion. Like fellow GOP Senate candidates Mehmet Oz in Pennsylvania and Ron Johnson in Wisconsin (the latter of whom is an incumbent running for re-election), Bolduc expressed support for making decisions about access to reproductive rights at the state level. What’s going to happen if some of these people win and no longer face imminent scrutiny from voters? There’s nothing stopping them from getting behind a national abortion ban. Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) already proposed a federal 15-week ban.
“I do not support, I do not support a federal ban either for or against abortion at the federal level. It is now a state issue,” Bolduc ranted, addressing the audience. “I support New Hampshire’s law. I support Granite Staters. She lies.” Polling has the race in New Hampshire within single digits. Bolduc hasn’t led in a single public survey cataloged by FiveThirtyEight since the general election season began in New Hampshire, although the most recent poll had the two candidates tied, and Hassan’s leads have reached the low single digits. A poll from Emerson College, which is well-regarded for its accuracy, had her up by four percent earlier this month, according to numbers from FiveThirtyEight.
New Hampshire GOP Senate nominee Don Bolduc claims without evidence that buses are bringing in people from outside the state to illegally vote.
When pressed on it, Bolduc claims it’s “valid” because “this is what granite staters are telling me.” pic.twitter.com/j71KcMJv4a
— The Recount (@therecount) October 27, 2022
