BETTY HALL MEETS THE DEADLINE AND THEN SOME

PRESS RELEASEAugust 7, 2008 
Contact:Betty Hall18 Old Milford RoadBrookline, NH 03033
603-672-8712hallmfg@charter.netBETTY HALL MEETS THE DEADLINE AND THEN SOME

Coming right down to the wire of the deadline, 1200 signatures have been submitted to checklist supervisors for verification. The required number has been exceeded to ensure that all signatures collected come from voters living within the district Hall would represent, i.e.Nashua Wards 1, 2, 5, 9, Towns of Hollis, Brookline and Mason.

When Betty Hall decided to run for the NH State Senate as an Independent, minutes before the 5pm sign-up deadline, she  was expecting an adventure and a challenge.  Discomfort with the performance of the two parties had been growing steadily for the last four years.

Blazing a new trail the old fashioned way with 'boots on the ground'  has proved as challenging as Hall expected. Starting at the last possible moment has compressed the collecting of signatures into a very short time frame. It has also produced some hilarious moments. With three weeks of "drownpours, think of an umbrella springing open inside the car and sprinkling water over nominating papers which have to be slowly dried in the oven because everything in the house is damp and limp from the humidity", said Hall. "The help of grassroots folks in extensive (wet) 'boots on the ground' tramping all around the district was just so gracious and so very much appreciated. Some even took the time to go to my website to get a form and then mailed it to me. There were days when I felt I should be wearing waders and days when it seemed that I was the only one out-and-about in such weather", she laughed.

So why have the ranks of independent voters grown? Why are there a growing number of candidates avoiding the major party label?"It is clear to many that the major parties have failed to meet the challenges of our time. A growing new trend away from nonperforming and unaccountable parties is increasingly visible and, in my opinion, much needed. I feel that I can best continue to serve unencumbered by the labels."