Canadian visits to N.H. continue to drop while Governor Ayotte withdraws nomination for state's economic leader
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During an Executive Council meeting on Wednesday, Ayotte announced that her nomination to reappoint Caswell had been withdrawn.
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Ayotte said she plans to join a trade delegation to Canada in September.
'We're going to continue to focus on our relationships with Canadians, which are quite important,' she said during the meeting.
Caswell and Ayotte plan to spend about a week in Nova Scotia and Quebec, where they will meet with businesses, members of the tourism industry, and government officials.
Confirming a nomination requires at least three of the five executive councilors to vote in favor of the governor's nominee. The governor can withdraw a nomination that lacks the needed support.
'I deeply appreciate Commissioner Caswell's terrific work, and we can discuss it further,' Ayotte said.
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Caswell told the Union Leader that he will stay on in the position in 'holdover' status for the time being, as talks with the councilors continue. He's allowed to do so for up to six months,
Caswell did not immediately respond to a request for comment on this story.
'I was shocked,' said Executive Councilor Janet Stevens, a Rye Republican. Stevens said she supported Caswell and commended his work on housing and dispersing emergency relief during the pandemic.
'He's done great things for the state of New Hampshire,' she said.
Stevens said she had been 'inundated' with calls from business leaders and chambers of commerce in support of Caswell's reappointment.
The other executive councilors did not immediately respond to a request for comment on this story.
Caswell was the first commissioner to lead the Department of Business and Economic Affairs which was created in 2017. He was nominated by Republican Governor Chris Sununu and reappointed in 2021 to serve a second four-year term that expired in July.
In June, the
A VisitNH post included text encouraging people to 'Celebrate love all month long' with Pride events, festivals, and parades around the state.
After Caswell was tagged in a request to remove the post, it was taken down within an hour. Now, the page displays a
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