“I think he has been an excellent governor. I think he demonstrated what we call New Hampshire values,” said John DiBernardo, 73, of Keene.

Sununu’s support is one of Ayotte’s greatest assets, but he also gets some of the attention she needs. Just before Ayotte’s remarks, the governor bounced onto the stage in his usual uniform of gray trousers and a ‘SKI NH’ jacket. He sounded completely sincere when he declared that this was “amazing!” He told the crowd that “New Hampshire’s success is all about housing, and we’re going to get that done,” outlining the need to bring developers, banks, cities and his $100 million InvestNH fund all together to continue to bring.

Sununu is an increasingly rare example of bipartisan leadership in a state that typically backs Democrats in national races but where Republicans often do well locally. Nicole Ranulf, an undecided Democrat from Concord who I spoke to during the governor’s race, told me she likes Sununu because “he has had policies that have been more liberal, policies that have been more conservative.”

Sununu may be popular, but he’s not all-powerful. He campaigned tirelessly with Donald Trump’s main challenger, Nikki Haley, but to no avail. And Craig also has a major asset: Vice President Kamala Harris, who can be expected to boost turnout among some Democratic-leaning constituencies and who leads the state by nearly seven points. Still, then president Biden won the state in 2020, Sununu captured all counties. And his word may have more weight locally. “It’s always better when the president wins the race,” Sununu told me. But he is hopeful: “We look at the individual candidates. We are so locally controlled here compared to other states.”

Still, the presidential election plays a role in some voters’ assessment of Ayotte. “I know people who absolutely won’t vote for her because she spoke out against Trump last time,” DiBernardo told me, referring to her rescinding of support for Trump in 2016, following the revelation of an “Access Hollywood” tape depicting Trump rude comments about women. On the other hand, Rich Kelton, an 81-year-old retired UPS driver who left the Republican Party and became a Democrat because of Trump, told a market basket in Swanzey, near the housing project: “Somehow (Ayotte) lost her conscience because she said she would vote for Trump this time.”

One of Ayotte’s key promises is that she will stick to Sununu’s overall approach to governing, a vow that seems to resonate with many voters. At Market Basket, Spofford jewelry designer Evan Deutsch told me, “I think she’s just going to continue on the Sununu path, and I think that’s probably the right path for us.” He views her experience in the federal government as an additional asset. Earlier, Patty Kastle, a retired school system accountant from Winchester, told me she doesn’t like any of the candidates for governor, but if she had to choose, she would vote for Ayotte, adding, “I love Sununu, he was perfect . ”

Craig, whose campaign did not respond to my interview request, remains fiercely competitive despite her more limited experience in state politics. In fact, this year’s race has become Democrats’ best chance to flip a governor’s house. She will need some Sununu voters to win, and rarely criticizes the outgoing governor by name, choosing instead to promote policies central to the “Sununu path,” such as school vouchers and the gradual elimination of an income tax on interest and dividends. in 2025. (Though she did say on a recent Pod Save America podcast that it was “crazy,” with an expletive, that Sununu voted for Trump after campaigning so hard for Haley.)

Her biggest attack on Ayotte was on abortion, often reminding voters that Ayotte had voted to defund Planned Parenthood in the Senate. Ayotte told me she will respect state law, which bans abortion after 24 weeks, with exceptions for fetal abnormalities and the life of the mother. “If anything restrictive is sent to my desk as governor, I will veto it,” she told me.

Ayotte’s campaign went after Craig over her record as mayor of Manchester, suggesting that under her leadership the city’s drug and homelessness crisis worsened. “Manchester has been a problem city for a long time. I want to know what choices she made there,” Ranulf told me. Ayotte has also used the slogan “Don’t Massify New Hampshire” as a criticism of the Bay State’s liberal tax and spending policies, which Democrats accuse of wanting to import. Craig has been raising money with Massachusetts Governor Maura Healey, which doesn’t do much to allay fears of liberal policies moving north.

Some voters are growing tired of the antagonism on both sides. “All you see are the negative ads,” Kastle complained. Ranulf wishes the election were more respectful, like Sununu’s race against Molly Kelly in 2018, saying he was “very determined to promote the things he actually wanted to do, rather than attacking her position.” DiBernardo told me, “I’m sorry to see (Sununu) leave, I wish he would run for another term.”

If Sununu had run again, he would probably have been on his way to victory. And while Ayotte is the best choice to continue on the Sununu path, it’s not yet clear in this politically divided state whether his coat will be enough to get her to the governor’s mansion.

Carine Hajjar is a Globe Opinion writer. She can be reached at [email protected].