Kelly Ayotte (born June 27, 1968, Nashua, New Hampshire, U.S.) is an American Republican lawyer and politician who was elected governor of New Hampshire in 2024. Ayotte previously served in the U.S. Senate (2011–17) and was the state’s first female attorney general (2004–09).
After studying political science at Pennsylvania State University (B.A., 1990), Ayotte earned a law degree at Villanova University in 1993. She clerked for Justice Sherman Horton of the New Hampshire Supreme Court before joining a law firm in 1994. Four years later she became a state prosecutor. Ayotte served as chief of the New Hampshire Homicide Unit and deputy attorney general before being appointed (2004) the state’s attorney general. During that time she married (2001) Joe Daley, a pilot in the U.S. Air Force, and the couple later had two children.
Ayotte, who was reappointed attorney general twice, resigned in 2009 to run for the U.S. Senate seat left empty by the retirement of Judd Gregg. She received endorsements from such Republicans as Mitt Romney, Haley Barbour, and Rick Santorum, and she easily won the election. After taking office in 2011, she took a generally conservative position on most issues, consonant with her party. She opposed the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, same-sex marriage, and efforts to strengthen background checks on the purchase of firearms. Ayotte also supported a constitutional amendment requiring a balanced federal budget. Although she expressed skepticism on matters of climate change, she often supported environmental legislation, contrary to her party’s typical stance.
In 2016 Ayotte ran for a second term, facing off against Gov. Maggie Hassan. It was widely seen as one of the most competitive races in the country. Ayotte attempted to adopt a moderate stance, and she notably focused on her efforts to curtail the state’s—and country’s—escalating opioid crisis; in 2016 she played a leading role in the passage of a federal bill to fight opioid addiction. However, she struggled in her response to the polarizing candidacy of Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump. At one point she claimed that he was a role model but later rescinded her support for him. In the November election, Ayotte lost by some 1,000 votes.