New Hampshire Republicans have mounted a pressure campaign against one of the state’s highest-ranking Democrats, saying she inappropriately used official resources this month to help a partisan law firm connect with voters who will be negatively impacted by a new state law.
Republicans called on Karen Liot Hill to either resign from the state’s five-member Executive Council or face impeachment. They launched a dedicated website with a petition seeking support for her ouster. And they asked the New Hampshire Department of Justice to open an investigation.
In messages from her official email address, Liot Hill asked several individuals for help finding people who will be “impacted” by a newly signed state law that tightens voter ID requirements for absentee ballots. She said the law “will make it harder for people to vote,” and she asked the individuals if they would be willing to speak with an attorney from the Elias Law Group, who was copied on the messages.
The Elias Law Group, which represents Democrats and progressive causes, bills itself as “the nation’s go-to law firm to fight back against voter suppression and election subversion.” It was founded in 2021 by Marc E. Elias, who has worked on behalf of several Democratic presidential candidates.
Republican State Representative Joseph F. Sweeney of Salem, who serves as deputy majority leader in the New Hampshire House, said the emails show Liot Hill used her office to help a Democratic law firm recruit plaintiffs to challenge the new state law.
“That’s not public service; that’s political lawfare run out of a taxpayer-funded inbox,” he said in a statement.
Liot Hill is pushing back, however, saying her responsibilities as an elected official include advocating for the voting rights of her constituents. She said she offered to make some introductions and was “happy” to disclose those emails publicly, adding that she doesn’t have any further plans to make email introductions to anyone connected with the Elias Law Group.
“I will continue to use my official email address to do my job, including constituent services, which is standard practice for elected officials,” she said. “It is outrageous but not surprising that Republicans are attacking me for doing my job and serving my constituents.”
The emails in question — which The Boston Globe obtained via a public records request — were first reported Wednesday by the New Hampshire Journal, a conservative publication that raised questions about whether Liot Hill might be getting paid to help the firm, since she had written in the emails about “working with” others on this issue.
Liot Hill told the Globe that the support she lent to the Elias Law Group was uncompensated.
“I used the phrase ‘working with some folks’ in the sense of ‘assisting in an effort,’ not in the sense of ‘receiving compensation,’” she said. “My offer of assistance was to provide email introductions, which I did.”
Liot Hill said she doesn’t have an attorney-client relationship with Tina Meng Morrison, the Elias Law Group lawyer who was copied in her email messages.
Sweeney, the state representative, said on Thursday that executive councilors can be impeached by the House and tried by the Senate for corruption, malpractice, or maladministration. Liot Hill’s conduct clearly implicates the latter two categories, he said.
If she doesn’t resign before the legislative filing period opens in September, then he will file articles of impeachment against her, he said.
“New Hampshire’s message is simple: we protect the integrity of our elections, we don’t outsource state policy to D.C. operatives, and no official, not even the highest ranking Democrat in state government, is above accountability,” he added.
The new law at the center of Liot Hill’s emails will require absentee voters to either bring a photo ID to their local election officials to request a ballot in person, or submit a copy of their ID or a notarized signature along with their application. While proponents of the change said it will better protect election integrity, critics said it will cause confusion and reduce accessibility for voters. The changes will take effect before the November general election.
Liot Hill is the only Democrat on the Executive Council, which serves as a counterbalance to the governor’s power by signing off on gubernatorial appointments and reviewing government contracts worth $10,000 or more.
New Hampshire GOP Chairman James MacEachern sent a letter on Thursday asking New Hampshire Attorney General John M. Formella to open an investigation into Liot Hill’s conduct. Without citing a particular statute, MacEachern’s letter claimed Liot Hill had engaged in “taxpayer-funded electioneering.” To support that claim, he cited a New Hampshire Journal article in which the only reference to “electioneering” was a quote from himself.
New Hampshire Democratic Party Chair Raymond Buckley said in a social media post that his GOP counterparts had misused the term “electioneering,” and he called the New Hampshire Journal a “goofy Republican attack blog.”
One provision of state law defines “electioneering” as taking actions “specifically designed to influence the vote of a voter on any question or office.” Cambridge Dictionary defines it as efforts “to persuade people to vote for a particular political party.” The allegation that Liot Hill’s conduct constituted “electioneering” appears to rest on the Elias Law Group’s stated mission, which includes a commitment to “help Democrats win.”
Michael S. Garrity, a spokesperson for the DOJ, acknowledged that Formella’s office had received MacEachern’s letter.
“We will assess the information provided and determine the appropriate course of action based on the facts and applicable law,” he said.
Aside from the emails issue, MacEachern’s letter also mentioned prior incidents for which Liot Hill has faced scrutiny: She was arrested in 2010 and 2018 for drunken driving (as was publicly reported prior to her 2024 election to the Executive Council), and her campaign finances are the subject of complaint that’s under DOJ review.
“Granite Staters expect their elected officials to use their positions to serve the people, not to further their political interests,” MacEachern wrote. “Liot Hill’s decision to use her official capacity to communicate on behalf of a political law firm adds to the ethical concerns that have already been generated by her previous scandals.”
Steven Porter can be reached at steven.porter@globe.com. Follow him @reporterporter.