On the Trail: Trump won the election, but not in New Hampshire, electors vote

New Hampshire's four electors gathered for a mostly ceremonial vote for the presidential election Tuesday. Reflecting the will of the voters, their votes went to Vice President Kamala Harris and running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz.

New Hampshire's four electors gathered for a mostly ceremonial vote for the presidential election Tuesday. Reflecting the will of the voters, their votes went to Vice President Kamala Harris and running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz. PAUL STEINHAUSER—Courtesy

Governor Chris Sununu and Secretary of State David Scanlan help Electors Latha Mangipudi, and Eva Castillo-Turgeon seal with wax their documents for the four electors cast ballots on behalf of Vice President Kamala Harris and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, the Democratic vice presidential nominee, in a ceremonial vote at the Executive Council chamber on Tuesday, December 17, 2024.

Governor Chris Sununu and Secretary of State David Scanlan help Electors Latha Mangipudi, and Eva Castillo-Turgeon seal with wax their documents for the four electors cast ballots on behalf of Vice President Kamala Harris and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, the Democratic vice presidential nominee, in a ceremonial vote at the Executive Council chamber on Tuesday, December 17, 2024. GEOFF FORESTER—Monitor staff

Governor Chris Sununu leads the applause as Electors Gerri Cannon,  Jacqueline Weatherspoon, Latha Mangipudi, and Eva Castillo-Turgeon hold up their certified documents for the four electors cast ballots on behalf of Vice President Kamala Harris and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, the Democratic vice presidential nominee, in a ceremonial vote at the Executive Council chamber on Dec. 17.

Governor Chris Sununu leads the applause as Electors Gerri Cannon, Jacqueline Weatherspoon, Latha Mangipudi, and Eva Castillo-Turgeon hold up their certified documents for the four electors cast ballots on behalf of Vice President Kamala Harris and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, the Democratic vice presidential nominee, in a ceremonial vote at the Executive Council chamber on Dec. 17. GEOFF FORESTER / Monitor staff

Secretary of State David Scanlan leads the applause after the four electors cast ballots on behalf of Vice President Kamala Harris and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, the Democratic vice presidential nominee, in a ceremonial vote at the Executive Council chamber on Tuesday, December 17, 2024.

Secretary of State David Scanlan leads the applause after the four electors cast ballots on behalf of Vice President Kamala Harris and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, the Democratic vice presidential nominee, in a ceremonial vote at the Executive Council chamber on Tuesday, December 17, 2024. GEOFF FORESTER—Monitor staff

Elector Latha Mangipudi smiles during the ceremony to cast ballots on behalf of Vice President Kamala Harris and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, the Democratic vice presidential nominee, in a ceremonial vote at the Executive Council chamber.

Elector Latha Mangipudi smiles during the ceremony to cast ballots on behalf of Vice President Kamala Harris and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, the Democratic vice presidential nominee, in a ceremonial vote at the Executive Council chamber.

Electors Jacqueline Weatherspoon (left), Eva Castillo-Turgeon, Latha Mangipudi, Gerri Cannon, stand with Democratic Chairman Ray Buckley (center) and Secretary of State David Scanlan after the ceremon as  the four electors cast ballots on behalf of Vice President Kamala Harris and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, the Democratic vice presidential nominee, in a ceremonial vote at the Executive Council chamber on Dec. 17.

Electors Jacqueline Weatherspoon (left), Eva Castillo-Turgeon, Latha Mangipudi, Gerri Cannon, stand with Democratic Chairman Ray Buckley (center) and Secretary of State David Scanlan after the ceremon as the four electors cast ballots on behalf of Vice President Kamala Harris and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, the Democratic vice presidential nominee, in a ceremonial vote at the Executive Council chamber on Dec. 17. GEOFF FORESTER photos / Monitor staff

By PAUL STEINHAUSER

For the Monitor

Published: 12-17-2024 1:21 PM

Modified: 12-17-2024 5:00 PM


Presidential electors gathered at state capitols across the country on Tuesday, to cast their electoral votes in the 2024 election, a key step in formalizing President-elect Donald Trump’s White House victory over Vice President Kamala Harris.

At the New Hampshire State House, the state’s four electors cast ballots on behalf of Harris and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, the Democratic vice presidential nominee, in a largely ceremonial vote at the Executive Council chamber

“This is the formal vote for President and Vice President of the United States,” said New Hampshire Secretary of State Dave Scanlan, who presided over the procedure. “Every state in the country right now is going through this process.”

New Hampshire was one of four states, along with Indiana, Tennessee, and Vermont, to lead off the voting with 10 a.m. ceremonies.

When Americans cast their ballots for president, they’re technically voting for state electors committed to supporting their choice for president and vice president, a process known as the electoral college. The electors are expected to vote in accordance with the outcome of the popular vote in their state. The electoral votes from the states will be certified on Jan. 6 during a joint session of Congress in the nation’s capital.

The political parties in each state choose the slate of electors ahead of the general election.

New Hampshire’s four electors, chosen by the New Hampshire Democratic Party, were a historic and diverse group. They were civil leader and Manchester police commissioner Eva Castillo; former state Rep. Latha Mangipudi, the first Asian American Pacific Islander Democratic legislator elected to the state House of Representatives; human rights and women’s empowerment advocate Jackie Weatherspoon, a former state representative who is Black; and former state Rep. Gerri Cannon, who in 2018 was the first transgender person elected to a state office.

Castillo, in a speech with political overtones, urged that we “begin accepting each other for that God-given right of dignity” to make “this the country that it should be.”

Article continues after...

Yesterday's Most Read Articles

Castillo said that she cast her vote for Harris and Walz “because they represent my values and as a proud Latina.” She added that she “will continue to fight hard to make New Hampshire a welcoming state ... nothing changes without struggle but we’re here to keep struggling to make New Hampshire the welcoming state that it should be and this nation the greatest nation on earth.”

Speaking later with the Monitor, Castillo she hopes the country can unite.

“I wanted to get a message that we cannot preach one thing and then practice another,” she said. “We really are a divided nation, and I feel it is kind of hypocritical to keep saying we are one nation under God. We are not one nation under God, and we have to work hard to really get back and heal and make the America that we all want to live in that welcomes and respects everybody.”

Mangipudi served on the Nashua school board before running for a seat in the New Hampshire House of Representatives where she served for more than a decade.

“This is the country of immigrants and I’m proud to represent that the dream still lives on … but we have to make the dream a reality,” she said.

New Hampshire Gov. Chris Sununu, in one of his last acts as governor, took part in the ceremonial vote.

In praising the state’s voter engagement and participation and in complimenting Scanlan and his office, the governor emphasized that “we do it a little bit different and a hell of a lot better than everybody else.”