Former US Sen. Ayotte to face former Manchester Mayor Craig in New Hampshire governor's race

CONCORD, N.H. (AP) — New Hampshire will elect a female governor for the third time in November after former U.S. Sen. Kelly Ayotte and former Manchester Mayor Joyce Craig won their respective primaries Tuesday.

The governor's office is an open seat for the first time since 2016 thanks to Republican Gov. Chris Sununu's decision against seeking a fifth two-year term.

Though six candidates were competing in the Republican primary, the race largely was between Ayotte and former state Senate President Chuck Morse, while on the Democratic side, Craig had the most competition from Cinde Warmington, a member of the governor's Executive Council.

New Hampshire has elected two female governors, both of whom are now in the U.S. Senate — Democrats Jeanne Shaheen and Maggie Hassan. But Ayotte, who was New Hampshire’s first female attorney general, said she is more interested in following in Sununu’s footsteps.

“Over the last eight years under Gov. Sununu’s leadership, this state has been rocking it,” she told supporters in Manchester. "And this election is about making sure New Hampshire remains that way.”

Craig served on the Manchester school board and board of aldermen before being elected as the city’s first female mayor in 2017. She said leading the state’s largest city for three terms gives her the experience to be governor, though critics blamed her for its ongoing struggles with homelessness and crime.

In remarks to supporters, Craig said she is prepared to tackle the state's housing crisis, strengthen public schools and expand access to reproductive health care. She also accused Ayotte of lying about her record.

“The last thing our state needs is a governor pitting people and communities against each other,” Craig said. “She is the most extreme threat to reproductive freedoms our state has ever seen and is too dangerous for New Hampshire. But I know that with all of your hard work and support, we will win in November and create a brighter future for our state.”

After five years as attorney general, Ayotte served one term in the U.S. Senate before narrowly losing her seat to Hassan in 2016. She focused much of her campaign on stoking anti-Massachusetts sentiment with her “Don’t Mass it up” slogan, leaning less on the traditional anti-tax rhetoric and more on crime and immigration.

In contrast to its first-in-the-nation presidential primary, New Hampshire is among the last states to hold state-level primary elections, leaving the winners just eight weeks to woo voters before Nov. 5.

As in the governor's race, there was no incumbent running in the 2nd Congressional District, where U.S. Rep. Annie Kuster is retiring after six terms. The seat has not been open since 2010.

Former White House aide Maggie Goodlander won the Democratic primary for that seat, defeating former Executive Councilor Colin Van Ostern, who previously ran for governor and secretary of state and had been endorsed by Kuster.

Goodlander, who is married to President Joe Biden’s national security advisor, grew up in Nashua and recently moved back there from Washington. She worked in the Justice Department as a top antitrust official and as counsel to Attorney General Merrick Garland before moving to the White House chief of staff’s office earlier this year.

“I got into this campaign to fight for our freedoms, our economic freedom, the freedom to vote and absolutely the freedom for us to have control over own bodies,” Goodlander told supporters in Nashua. “In Congress, I am going to approach every single day, every single vote, by asking myself a very simple question: What is this going to mean for the people of the Second District?”

In the Republican 2nd District primary, second-time candidate Lily Tang Williams defeated a dozen opponents to finish first this time.

A native of China who became a U.S. citizen, Tang Williams calls herself the embodiment of the American Dream. A longtime GOP activist, she said she wants to go to Congress to keep that dream alive and to tackle inflation, the border crisis and the weaponization of government.

“I think her story is without parallel,” said voter Philip Cistulli, of Concord. “That and her fierceness and her commitment to upholding the Constitution and the freedoms we hold dear in this country.”

In the 1st Congressional District, U.S. Rep. Chris Pappas won the Democratic primary as he seeks a fourth term, defeating Kevin Rondeau, who ran in the Republican primary two years ago before switching parties.

Pappas, who considers himself a pragmatic voice in Washington, has said he expects immigration and abortion rights to be the top issues in the general election. He said the Republican primary candidates did little more than express devotion to former President Donald Trump and regurgitate anti-abortion talking points.

His seat flipped five times in seven election cycles before he won his first term in 2018.

Former state Sen. Russell Prescott won the Republican nomination in the 1st Congressional District.

Prescott, who lost the same primary two years ago, defeated six other Republicans, including Joseph Kelly Levasseur, Chris Bright, Holly Noveletsky and Walter McFarlane.

Prescott, an engineer who owns a company that makes water treatment systems, said he has always found new ways to solve problems, whether in his business or at the Statehouse, and would continue doing so in Washington.

He touted his lengthy experience in Concord, including five terms in the state Senate and two terms on the governor’s Executive Council, which approves state contracts.

Associated Press Writer Kathy McCormack contributed to this report.

Former Manchester Mayor Joyce Craig participates in Democratic debate for New Hampshire governor, Wednesday, Sept. 4, 2024, in Manchester, N.H. (Derek Stokely/WMUR-TV via AP)

Republican gubernatorial candidate Kelly Ayotte celebrates at her victory party after winning GOP nomination for New Hampshire governor at Bonfire in Manchester, N.H., on Primary Day Tuesday, Sept. 10, 2024. (David Lane/Union Leader via AP)

Republican gubernatorial candidate Kelly Ayotte celebrates at her victory party after winning the GOP nomination for New Hampshire governor at Bonfire in Manchester, N.H., on Primary Day Tuesday, Sept. 10, 2024. (David Lane/Union Leader via AP)

Republican gubernatorial candidate Kelly Ayotte waves to the crowd at Bonfire Country Bar in Manchester, N.H., after winning the Republican primary against former state Senate President Chuck Morse on Tuesday, Sept. 10, 2024. (Geoff Forester/The Concord Monitor via AP)

Voters fill out ballots, in a primary election to pick candidates for governor, the U.S. House, and the state Legislature, Tuesday, Sept. 10, 2024, in Nashua, N.H. (AP Photo/Steven Senne)

Voters, right, enter booths to fill out ballots Tuesday, Sept. 10, 2024, in Nashua, N.H., in a primary election to pick candidates for governor, the U.S. House, and the state Legislature. (AP Photo/Steven Senne)

Voters fill out ballots, in a primary election to pick candidates for governor, the U.S. House, and the state Legislature, Tuesday, Sept. 10, 2024, in Nashua, N.H. (AP Photo/Steven Senne)

A voter enters a booth to fill out a ballot in a primary election to pick candidates for governor, the U.S. House, and the state Legislature, Tuesday, Sept. 10, 2024, in Nashua, N.H. (AP Photo/Steven Senne)

A voter enters a booth fill out a ballot in a primary election to pick candidates for governor, the U.S. House, and the state Legislature, Tuesday, Sept. 10, 2024, in Nashua, N.H. (AP Photo/Steven Senne)

Democratic candidates For New Hampshire governor Restaurant owner Jon Kiper, left, Former Manchester Mayor Joyce Craig, center, and Executive Councilor Cinde Warmington debate, Wednesday, Sept. 4, 2024, in Manchester, N.H. (Derek Stokely/WMUR-TV via AP)

Democratic congressional candidates Maggie Goodlander, left, and Colin Van Ostern shake hands after the Live Free or Die Debates at the Rosamond Page Putnam Center for the Performing Arts on the campus of New England College in Henniker, N.H., Wednesday evening, Sept. 4, 2024. The candidates are hoping to replace U.S. Rep. Annie Kuster who is not running for reelection. (Geoff Forester/The Concord Monitor via AP)

Former U.S. Sen. Kelly Ayotte, right, speaks during a Republican gubernatorial candidate debate with former state Senate president Chuck Morse on Tuesday, Sept. 3, 2024, in Manchester, N.H. (Derek Stokely/WMUR-TV via AP)

Republican gubernatorial candidates Kelly Ayotte and Chuck Morse shake hands at the end of their debate at the Rosamond Page Putnam Center for the Performing Arts on the campus of New England College in Henniker, N.H., Wednesday night, Sept. 4, 2024. (Geoff Forester/The Concord Monitor via AP)

DEER PARK, Texas (AP) — A towering flame gradually subsided Tuesday morning in the aftermath of a massive pipeline explosion after a vehicle drove through a fence and struck an above-ground valve, officials said.

Deer Park officials said police and local FBI agents initiated investigations and found no preliminary reports that would suggest a coordinated or “terrorist” attack and that “this appears to be an isolated incident.”

The investigation included efforts to learn more about the driver of a vehicle that was incinerated by the pipeline explosion as flames scorched the ground across a wide radius, severed adjacent power transmission lines and ignited homes at a distance. Police did not provide any information about the person's condition.

An evacuation area included nearly 1,000 homes and initial shelter orders included schools.

Operators shut off the flow of natural gas liquids in the pipeline, but so much remained in the miles of tubing that firefighters could do nothing but watch and hose down adjacent homes.

Deer Park Mayor Jerry Mouton Jr. described intense heat from a fire that endured for more than 12 hours as ladder trucks showered houses from above.

"A lot of the house structures that are adjacent to that are still catching on fire even though we’re putting a lot of water on them,” Mouton said at an afternoon news conference. A spewing flame still lit up the sky at sunset Monday.

Firefighters initially were dispatched at 9:55 a.m., after an explosion at a valve station in Deer Park, adjacent to La Porte, rattled homes and businesses, including a Walmart. Deer Park officials said an SUV drove into the valve after going through a fence on the side of the Walmart parking lot.

At the news conference, officials said only one person, a firefighter, sustained a minor injury. Later, Deer Park spokesperson Kaitlyn Bluejacket said four people were injured. She didn’t provide details about the severity of the injuries.

Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo said in a statement that 20 miles (32 kilometers) of pipeline between the two closed valves had to burn off before the fire would stop.

Anna Lewis, who was walking into the nearby Walmart when the explosion happened, said it sounded “like a bomb went off.” She said everyone inside was rushed to the back of the store and then taken across the street to a grocery store before being bussed to a community center.

“It scared me,” she said. “You really don’t know what to do when it’s happening.”

Geselle Melina Guerra said she and her boyfriend heard the explosion as they were having breakfast in their mobile home.

“All of a sudden we hear this loud bang and then I see something bright, like orange, coming from our back door that’s outside,” said Guerra, who lives within the evacuation area.

Guerra’s boyfriend, Jairo Sanchez, said they’re used to evacuations because they live close to other plants near the highway, but he hadn’t seen an explosion before in his 10 years living there.

“We just drove as far as we could because we didn’t know what was happening,” Sanchez said.

Houston, Texas’ largest city, is the nation’s petrochemical heartland and is home to a cluster of refineries and plants and thousands of miles of pipelines. Explosions and fires are a familiar sight in the area, including some that have been deadly, raising recurring questions about the adequacy of industry efforts to protect the public and the environment.

Letting the fire burn out is better, from an environmental perspective, than trying to attack the flames with some kind of suppressing foam or liquid, said Ramanan Krishnamoorti, a petroleum engineering professor at the University of Houston.

“Otherwise it’s going to release a lot of volatile organics into the environment,” he said.

Still, there will undoubtedly be negative environmental consequences, including a release of soot, carbons and organic material, he said.

The pipeline’s owner, Dallas-based Energy Transfer, said air monitoring equipment was being set up near the plume of fire and smoke, which could be seen from at least 10 miles (16 kilometers) away at one point.

A statement from Harris County Pollution Control on Monday afternoon said no volatile organic compounds had been detected. The statement said particulate matter from the smoke was moderate and not an immediate risk to healthy people, although “sensitive populations may want to take precautions.” The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality said it was also monitoring the air.

Natural gas liquids are used primarily in the manufacturing of plastics and basic and intermediate chemicals, Krishnamoorti said.

The fire burned through nearby power lines, and the website PowerOutage.us said several thousand customers were without power at one point in Harris County.

Krishnamoorti said the area’s extensive pipeline infrastructure will have to be closely inspected for damage beyond the explosion site, though the fire “won’t be a major disrupter of supply chains.”

The Railroad Commission of Texas, which regulates oil and gas in the state, said its safety inspectors were investigating.

Margaret Newman, who lives on the edge of the evacuation zone, said that when she heard the explosion she went out into her yard and could see the flame shooting above the trees. She lost electricity but has a generator to keep her home cool and planned to stay put.

This story has been updated to correct that the pipeline carries natural gas liquids, not liquified natural gas.

AP writers Christopher L. Keller in Albuquerque, New Mexico, Valerie Gonzalez in McAllen, Texas, Sean Murphy in Oklahoma City and Jamie Stengle in Dallas contributed to this report.

Residents watch the pipeline fire burning in La Porte, Texas, from South Meadow Drive and East Meadow Drive Monday, Sept. 16, 2024, in Deer Park, Texas. (Yi-Chin Lee/Houston Chronicle via AP)

Firefighters respond to a pipeline fire Monday, Sept. 16, 2024, in Deer Park, Texas. (Yi-Chin Lee/Houston Chronicle via AP)

A Clear Lake man watches the pipeline fire burning in La Porte, Texas, as he gives a ride to his friend who is a resident on E. Meadow Drive, Monday, Sept. 16, 2024, in Deer Park, Texas. (Yi-Chin Lee/Houston Chronicle via AP)

Meadow Way Drive residents Maddy Graham, right, and Ashley Cordova are self evacuating with cat, Mitzi, as the pipeline fire burns in the background Monday, Sept. 16, 2024, in Deer Park, Texas. (Yi-Chin Lee/Houston Chronicle via AP)

A massive pipeline fire burns near Spencer Highway and Summerton on Monday, Sept. 16, 2024, in La Porte, Texas. (Brett Coomer/Houston Chronicle via AP)

Police block off a highway as a large fire from a pipeline explosion burns near La Porte, Texas, on Monday, Sept. 16, 2024. (AP Photo/Lekan Oyekanmi)

A pipeline with a giant plume of fire burns Monday, Sept. 16, 2024, in La Porte, Texas. (Brett Coomer/Houston Chronicle via AP)

A pipeline carrying natural gas liquids burns in a massive fire near La Porte, Texas, on Monday, Sept. 16, 2024. (AP Photo/Lekan Oyekanmi)

A pipeline carrying natural gas liquids burns near La Porte, Texas, on Monday, Sept. 16, 2024. (AP Photo/Lekan Oyekanmi)

A pipeline carrying liquified natural gas burns near Spencer Highway and Summerton on Monday, Sept. 16, 2024, in La Porte, Texas. (Brett Coomer/Houston Chronicle via AP)

Firefighters protect a neighborhood from a fire in a pipeline carrying liquified natural gas burns near Spencer Highway and Summerton on Monday, Sept. 16, 2024, in La Porte, Texas. (Brett Coomer/Houston Chronicle via AP)

A pipeline carrying liquified natural gas burns near Spencer Highway and Summerton on Monday, Sept. 16, 2024, in La Porte, Texas. (Brett Coomer/Houston Chronicle via AP)

A firefighter directs a line of water around a fire on a pipeline carrying liquified natural gas near Spencer Highway and Summerton on Monday, Sept. 16, 2024, in La Porte, Texas. (Brett Coomer/Houston Chronicle via AP)

A pipeline carrying liquified natural gas burns near Spencer Highway and Summerton on Monday, Sept. 16, 2024, in La Porte, Texas. (Brett Coomer/Houston Chronicle via AP)

A pipeline carrying liquified natural gas burns near Spencer Highway and Summerton on Monday, Sept. 16, 2024, in La Porte, Texas. (Brett Coomer/Houston Chronicle via AP)

A firefighter directs a line of water around a fire on a pipeline carrying liquified natural gas near Spencer Highway and Summerton on Monday, Sept. 16, 2024, in La Porte, Texas. (Brett Coomer/Houston Chronicle via AP)

Firefighters take a break from battling a fire at a pipeline carrying liquified natural gas near Spencer Highway and Summerton on Monday, Sept. 16, 2024, in La Porte, Texas. (Brett Coomer/Houston Chronicle via AP)

Firefighters battle a blaze from a pipeline carrying liquified natural gas that burns near Spencer Highway and Summerton on Monday, Sept. 16, 2024, in La Porte, Texas. (Brett Coomer/Houston Chronicle via AP)

A firefighter directs a line of water around a fire on a pipeline carrying liquified natural gas near Spencer Highway and Summerton on Monday, Sept. 16, 2024, in La Porte, Texas. (Brett Coomer/Houston Chronicle via AP)

A firefighter directs a line of water around a fire on a pipeline carrying liquified natural gas near Spencer Highway and Summerton on Monday, Sept. 16, 2024, in La Porte, Texas. (Brett Coomer/Houston Chronicle via AP)

A firefighter directs a line of water around a fire on a pipeline carrying liquified natural gas near Spencer Highway and Summerton on Monday, Sept. 16, 2024, in La Porte, Texas. (Brett Coomer/Houston Chronicle via AP)

A pipeline with a giant plume of fire burns Monday, Sept. 16, 2024, in La Porte, Texas. (Brett Coomer/Houston Chronicle via AP)

A pipeline carrying liquified natural gas burns near Spencer Highway and Summerton on Monday, Sept. 16, 2024, in La Porte, Texas. (Brett Coomer/Houston Chronicle via AP)

A pipeline fire in La Porte, Texas, sparks grass fires and burns power poles on Monday, Sept. 16, 2024, forcing people in the surrounding neighborhood to evacuate. (KTRK via AP)

Firefighters work on the scene of a pipeline fire in La Porte, Texas, Monday, Sept. 16, 2024. (KTRK via AP)

A burned vehicle sits near a pipeline fire in La Porte, Texas, Monday, Sept. 16, 2024. (KTRK via AP)

A pipeline fire in La Porte, Texas, sparks grass fires and burns power poles on Monday, Sept. 16, 2024, forcing people in the surrounding neighborhood to evacuate. (KTRK via AP)