CONCORD, N.H. — Although much attention was paid last week to the inauguration of New Hampshire Governor Kelly Ayotte, she wasn’t the only newly elected executive branch official to be sworn in for a high-ranking post.
Two new members joined three returning colleagues on the Executive Council, which serves as a day-to-day counterbalance on the chief executive’s power. Sometimes called “the most important office you’ve never heard of,” the five-member council meets regularly with the governor, vetting all contracts over $10,000 and approving appointments for judges and the heads of state agencies.
“We are the check and balance on the governor,” said Karen Liot Hill, a Democrat, who took office Thursday as the councilor for District 2. “We are there to look out and make sure that state spending is true to what it was intended for, to ensure that taxpayer dollars are being spent well, efficiently, and that taxpayers are getting the best value for their investments.”
Liot Hill, who brings two decades of experience as a city councilor, now represents a largely Democratic district that covers 77 towns and the cities of Claremont, Concord, Keene, and Lebanon. She’s stepping into the role that former councilor Cinde Warmington had played before running for governor.
“I’ve taken to calling myself ‘the Democratic leader of the Executive Council,’” Liot Hill said with a laugh. “It’s a very small caucus: one.”
On the one hand, Liot Hill said she sees her job as that of “the loyal opposition.” On the other, she said her loyalty is to the people of New Hampshire, and she knows her GOP counterparts similarly want to “do good things” for the state.
“The majority of the work that we do on the Executive Council is actually not partisan,” she said. “We are there to be a check and balance on the governor, and so that means even Republican executive councilors are there to be a check and balance.”
The other newly elected councilor, John Stephen, a Republican, represents District 4, which covers 19 towns and the city of Manchester. Stephen was elected to the seat vacated by the retirement of Theodore “Ted” Gatsas, and he said he aims to leverage his public-sector and private-sector experience to improve government efficiency.
“I have a lot of knowledge that can help the council, and … I don’t want to just protect the New Hampshire Advantage. I want to help grow the New Hampshire Advantage,” Stephen said. “So a lot of what I think I can bring to the table is help with my background and experience to keep making sure that we never forget about the taxpayers, making sure that we help those in need, but we also keep New Hampshire special.”
Stephen, who runs his own management consulting firm, served as commissioner of the New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services from 2003 to 2007. Before that, he worked as deputy commissioner in the Department of Safety and an assistant attorney general in the Department of Justice.
Stephen said he and Ayotte are on the same page, and he loved the tone of her inaugural address.
After holding a very brief meeting with Ayotte last week, the five councilors will meet Wednesday to tackle their first full agenda.
This story first appeared in Globe NH | Morning Report, our free newsletter focused on the news you need to know about New Hampshire, including great coverage from the Boston Globe and links to interesting articles from other places. If you’d like to receive it via e-mail Monday through Friday, you can sign up here.
Steven Porter can be reached at steven.porter@globe.com. Follow him @reporterporter.