It's the 20th anniversary of Granny D's walk across the United States!   Join us Saturday, Aug. 3 for the Granny D Memorial Walk from Granny's home in Dublin, NH and walk six miles to Peterborough, NH's Depot Square.  Can't do 6 miles?   Walk with us the last mile, or just join us for the lunch & rally.  

Register by Aug 1 for free

In the wake of a complaint filed Monday by seven Republican members of the New Hampshire House of Representatives, Open Democracy Executive Director Olivia Zink urged state officials to “hold all political organizations to the same standard.”

“Granite Staters are tired of having out-of-state organizations tell us how we should vote,” Zink said. “It’s even more offensive when the group sidesteps political disclosure laws by calling themselves a nonprofit organization.”

This Thursday, June 21^st, the author and legal scholar cited by the Supreme Court in 35 of its decisions will be the keynote speaker for Open Democracy’s Annual Meeting. Yale Law Professor Akhil Reed Amar’s remarks will include a discussion of Article 10 of the New Hampshire Constitution [“Right of Revolution”].

The event runs from 5:30 pm to 7:30 pm at the Executive Court Banquet Facility (1199 S. Mammoth Road; Manchester, NH 03109).

CONCORD, NH — A survey of New Hampshire voters has found that large majorities in both parties believe big money is a problem in state elections, and support a current legislative proposal to fix it.

In the survey just released by Public Policy Polling, eight in 10 voters -- including 79% of Democrats, 74% of Republicans and 85% of Independents -- said they believe big money is a problem in Granite State elections.

Hollis, NH: On Thursday, November 30, NH Rebellion will hold a “Democracy Dinner” starting at 5:30 pm at the Lawrence Barn Community Center, 28 Depot Road, Hollis, NH with special guest Lawrence Lessig.

The speaking program will focus on the group’s campaign for a "Civic Dollars" campaign financing system in New Hampshire.

CONCORD, NEW HAMPSHIRE --- Throughout October, more than a dozen communities across New Hampshire will be treated to performances of “Granny D: The Power of One” a play which portrays the efforts of one woman to draw attention to the need for campaign finance reform and her contention that money in politics had betrayed our representative democracy.

Doris "Granny D" Haddock and 31 other people were arrested on April 21, 2000, while Granny D was reading the Declaration of Independence in the Capitol Rotunda.

Press releases and C-SPAN coverage from that day decribe the arrests.  

"We no longer have proper representation," Ms. Haddock, the 90-year-old woman who walked across the continent for campaign finance reform, told a press conference on the Senate lawn before she led the group into the Rotunda. "Our elected leaders are consumed by the need to raise election funds from special interests, and they no longer are able to represent the needs of the people or of our ravaged earth. We must declare our independence from the corrupting bonds of big money." 

Granny D's statement at her sentencing still resonates, today.

CONCORD: A new poll shows that two-thirds of New Hampshire adults support public financing of elections to reduce the influence of money in politics. Public financing had 67 percent approval overall and majority support among Democrats, Republicans and independents, according to the University of New Hampshire poll for the nonpartisan Coalition for Open Democracy and our project NH Rebellion. Only 7 percent opposed public financing, while 26 percent didn’t take a position.

National polls also have shown strong support for giving all voters more equal influence in elections.

6-mile NH Rebellion March to End Big Money in Politics.

Dublin --- Supporters of clean election reform will participate in a Granny D Memorial Walk from Dublin to Peterborough on Saturday, August 13th. Walkers will depart at 9:15 am from Cobb Meadow Road, near Granny D’s home, for a 6 mile walk ending in Depot Square Park in Peterborough. At the conclusion, food and entertainment will be provided. The public will be invited to share poems, stories and memories of Granny D.
 
Born in Laconia on January 24, 1910, Granny D began her political activism in 1960 when she and her husband, James Haddock, successfully campaigned against planned hydrogen bomb nuclear testing in Alaska, saving an Inuit fishing village at Point Hope. Granny D and her husband retired to Dublin, New Hampshire, in 1972 and there Granny D served on the Planning Board and was active in the community. 
 
At noon, a program will take place at Depot Square (12 Depot Square, Peterborough NH 03458)

Program will include:

    •    Music by Tattoo (Fred Simmons & Leslie Vogel), Granny D's "personal band" 

    •    Granny D Memories- Chuck Weed, Pat Westwater-Jong, Marsha Morrow, Dan Weeks 

    •    Keynote Speaker- Virginia Rasmussen, Move to Amends’ National Leadership Team

Granny D achieved national fame when, at the age of 90, she walked over 3,200 miles across the United States to advocate for campaign finance reform. After initial efforts with Senators John McCain and Russ Feingold to regulate campaign finances, Granny D forged ahead, until her death in March 2010, helping to spearhead a nationwide movement that continues to the current day with numerous groups working to overturn Citizens United and get big money out of politics.
 
“We are proud to continue the fight for clean elections,” said Olivia Zink, executive director of Open Democracy, the Concord, NH based election reform group that was started by Granny D  more than 10 years ago and that leads the bipartisan NH Rebellion project. “Government must work for We The People,” she said.
 
The event is free and open to the general public. For more info:  661-8621 or go to nhrebellion.org 

NH Rebellion is part of Open Democracy, the Concord-based nonpartisan reform organization founded by legendary NH hero Granny D. To learn more about the NH Rebellion, please visit: www.nhrebellion.org. To register for the walk please visit nhrebellion.org. To see details about the planned events,  follow us on Twitter @nhrebellion and on Facebook at: facebook.com/nhrebellion.

On Saturday, July 9th, we took to the streets once again to end the corruption of big money in politics and demand the accountability that we need in our legislature.

100 rebels walked the 5 mile trek from Portsmouth to New Castle where we had sandwiches and our Rally to #EndBigMoney in Fort Constitution. There we enjoyed a reading of the Declaration of Independence. Unfortunately, we were unable to have Betti Tamposi, the former assistant secretary of state under President George H.W. Bush, join us this year so David Borden, state representative from New Castle, filled in her for by reading an op-ed that she co-drafted with Dan Weeks. In it she noted her continued support for this movement by stating, “When citizen-funded elections are paired with other bipartisan reforms like full transparency, independent redistricting, closing the revolving door and stopping super PACs, Congress will finally be able shift the balance of power away from special interests and back to the American people.”

We also enjoyed some remarks from our keynote speaker and NH Rebellion founder Lawrence Lessig. He said, “We can’t wait 20 or 30 years to solve the issues facing America. Climate change is not going to wait, and we cannot wait to solve the issue of inequality in America.” Other speakers included John Rauh, founder of Americans for Campaign Reform, and our Democracy Fellow Jazmine Langley who added a very unique perspective to the program by outlining how the issue of big money in politics stifles her demographic: young people, women, and people of color.