Hope Damon
Running for: NH House Sullivan County District 08
Completed our 2026 State Candidate Survey
Position on Issues
Against| Read My Position
Citizens Count Issue Survey, 2026
Do you support the “Education Freedom Account” program, which gives students access to the per-pupil share of state school funding to spend on private school or home school expenses?
"Since it's inception, the voucher program has primarily funded students who were not previously attending public schools. We are using public funds to provide stipends to rich families and to support religious education. NH cannot afford this dual education model - our taxpayer funds should be used to improve public schools. Further, the USA was founded on separation of church and state - and that is essential to all being able to safely practice their religion of choice. We should not be paying for schools that practice segregation - whether it is for religion, socio-economic status, race, sexuality, etc."Against| Read My Position
Citizens Count Issue Survey, 2026
Should New Hampshire’s anti-discrimination law allow segregation based on biological sex in some settings, such as bathrooms and locker rooms?
"All people deserve to live safely as their authentic selves. Trans people are no more likely to cause harm than anyone else."Against| Read My Position
Citizens Count Issue Survey, 2026
Should New Hampshire ban abortions during the first trimester (e.g. after 6 weeks gestation)?
"These are personal decisions. Government should not be interfering in private healthcare."Against| Read My Position
Citizens Count Issue Survey, 2026
Should New Hampshire ban abortions during the second trimester (e.g. after 15 weeks gestation)?
"These are personal decisions. Government should not be interfering in private healthcare."Against| Read My Position
Citizens Count Issue Survey, 2026
Should NH add an income tax on earned income?
"It is essential that the state have adequate revenues for basic services to citizens while reducing the local property tax burden that is simply unsustainable for many hard-working Granite Staters. Rather than an income tax, we should restore the Interest and Dividends tax, stop giving tax breaks to huge multinational corporations such as Amazon, Apple and Walmart and make responsible state budget decisions including not funding vouchers for private schools."Against| Read My Position
Citizens Count Issue Survey, 2026
Should New Hampshire lower business taxes?
"I support a tiered business tax structure that minimizes taxes for truly small businesses and recognizes that taxing larger businesses is a necessary revenue source for the state."Other| Read My Position
Citizens Count Issue Survey, 2026
Should the state do more to encourage municipalities to remove zoning barriers to housing development?
"One-size-fits-all does not work for NH zoning. It is essential to pass enabling legislation that helps local housing development. The state must be much more effective at creatively helping communities address the housing crisis. If relying only on local approaches worked, we would not have the housing shortage and lack of affordability that we face. There are many effective approaches besides zoning. The state should be developing public/private partnerships to develop workforce housing, helping municipalities increase water and sewer infracture, host a communications campaign to improve understanding of off-site build homes and encouraging greater density in selective locations."Other| Read My Position
Citizens Count Issue Survey, 2026
Should New Hampshire do more to encourage the development of nuclear power, including small modular reactors (SMR), in the state?
"I need to learn more before forming an opinion. I am open to considering all options for clean, affordable energy."For| Read My Position
Citizens Count Issue Survey, 2026
Do you support legislation to expand the net energy metering system capacity cap from 1 MW to 5 MW for all residential and commercial customers in New Hampshire?
"NH is far behind all the other New England states in promoting clean energy. In addition to the considerable environmental benefits of increasing solar energy use, net metering is one of the necessary approaches to making NH an affordable and desirable place to live. We simply cannot afford to only rely on fossil fuels from elsewhere."For| Read My Position
Citizens Count Issue Survey, 2026
Should New Hampshire restore funding for the Office of the Child Advocate?
"It is a minimum requirement of a civilized society to keep our children safe from harm."For| Read My Position
Citizens Count Issue Survey, 2026
Should New Hampshire guarantee the right to access abortion before 24 weeks?
"These are personal decisions. Government should not be interfering in private healthcare."For| Read My Position
Citizens Count Issue Survey, 2026
Should New Hampshire reinstate the interest and dividends tax?
"The Interest and Dividends tax was almost entirely paid by wealthy people who continue to have wealth after paying the tax. It is essential that the state have adequate revenues for basic services to citizens while reducing the local property tax burden that is simply unsustainable for many hard-working Granite Staters. Restoring I & D is a necessary step to requiring the wealthy to pay their fair share."Against| Read My Position
Citizens Count Issue Survey, 2026
Do you support New Hampshire’s current system of public school funding, with about two-thirds of total funding coming from local property taxes?
"I serve on the House Education Funding committee. Public schools are essential not only for the current students and their families but for a sustainable strong economy. The current funding system unfairly burdens people living in communities that do not have a strong tax base. It pits neighbors in one affluent community against those nearby without the same resources - that results in profoundly different resources for schools. We must increase state funding of public schools for both fairness and consistent quality regardless of zip code. Collectively, NH raises enough education funding when all of the local property taxes are considered - but it is not distributed equitably. We need to fix that broken system. Every state has better state funding of public education."For| Read My Position
Citizens Count Issue Survey, 2026
Should New Hampshire legalize the recreational use of marijuana by allowing home-growing and private use without sales?
"Every other New England state is profiting from marijuana sales. There is more risk from legal alcohol consumption than from legal cannabis products - NH needs to catch up with today's knowledge. Marijuana is not a gateway drug - but purchasing it illegally increases risk of contamination with other harmful drugs. Licensed sales of clean product would be safer."For| Read My Position
Citizens Count Issue Survey, 2026
Should New Hampshire legalize the recreational use of marijuana by licensing growers and private retail locations?
"Every other New England state is profiting from marijuana sales. There is more risk from legal alcohol consumption than from legal cannabis products - NH needs to catch up with today's knowledge. Marijuana is not a gateway drug - but purchasing it illegally increases risk of contamination with other harmful drugs. Licensed sales of clean product would be safer."For| Read My Position
Citizens Count Issue Survey, 2026
Should New Hampshire legalize the recreational use of marijuana by establishing state-run cannabis stores?
"Every other New England state is profiting from marijuana sales. There is more risk from legal alcohol consumption than from legal cannabis products - NH needs to catch up with today's knowledge. Marijuana is not a gateway drug - but purchasing it illegally increases risk of contamination with other harmful drugs. Licensed sales of clean product would be safer."Against| Read My Position
Citizens Count Issue Survey, 2026
Should New Hampshire require new voters to provide proof of U.S. citizenship, such as a birth certificate or passport, when registering to vote?
"Against"Other| Read My Position
Citizens Count Issue Survey, 2026
Should New Hampshire allow at least 10% of students in each school district to enroll in a different public school, regardless of where they live?
"If NH had fair education funding from the state so that all public schools, regardless of zip code, provided high quality education and met student needs, I would support limited open enrollment. Under the present funding structure, open enrollment simply increases the inequities between affluent communities and the majority of towns. The legislation proposed thus far was woefully inadequate as it did not address many implementation concerns including transportation and special education services. School districts and superintendents already have procedures to transfer students between districts when necessary."For| Read My Position
Citizens Count Issue Survey, 2026
Should New Hampshire repeal the ban on abortion after 24 weeks gestation?
"These are personal decisions. Government should not be interfering in private healthcare."Against| Read My Position
Citizens Count Issue Survey, 2026
Should state law cap how much local school districts can increase their budget each year?
"Tax caps do not guarantee decreases in property taxes. The idea of a state mandate to vote on tax caps is a political tool. It is a sledgehammer approach without acknowledging that much of the increased costs are due to downshifting from federal and state government as well as increased education challenges in the post-Covid era. We do need to manage school district budgets very deliberately - that should include better supports from the Dept of Education so that small districts have needed expertise without always have individual contracts for every need (health insurance, special education services, purchasing supplies etc). It may include the state helping coordinate voluntary consolidation of administrative services."Other| Read My Position
Citizens Count Issue Survey, 2026
Should NH pass stricter gun control laws?
"Improving firearms safety and protecting Second Amendment rights should not be mutually exclusive - we can do both!! By far, the majority of firearms deaths in NH are suicide. Simply increasing the waiting period for firearms purchases and applying it to all firearms sales, is a well-established approach to decreasing suicides. We should also have passed the voluntary do-not-sell legislation so that people who recognize their mental health is not appropriate for owning a firearm are protected from access. Finally, a very carefully crafted law to create Extreme Risk Protection Orders would reduce domestic violence harms. None of these measures removes firearms from reasonable, mentally healthy people."
