Ayotte says no ‘set time frame’ for when she’ll nominate new Supreme Court justice

Gov. Kelly Ayotte said she doesn’t know when she’ll nominate a new justice to the state Supreme Court.

“That is an ongoing process,” she told reporters in her office Tuesday. “And I don’t have any set time frame for that. But when we get the best people to serve, that’s when I will nominate them and work with the council.”

A seat opened on New Hampshire’s highest court in September after former Chief Justice Gordon MacDonald resigned. Reporting from NHPR and an investigation by the judicial branch revealed that MacDonald orchestrated a highly unusual personnel move that allowed a close ally to collect nearly $50,000 in state funding while other branches were facing budget cuts. As governor, Ayotte will be responsible for nominating his successor and the Executive Council will vet and confirm or reject her nominee.

Before last week’s elections, some Democrats called on Ayotte, a Republican, to wait until new councilors were seated to make her nomination — a move they said would respect the will of the voters. The “blue wave” that brought Democrats dramatic victories in Congress and the State House also turned the Executive Council from a 4-1 Republican majority to a 5-0 Democratic majority.

Several of the incoming councilors, including Luz Bay, Melanie Levesque and Democratic incumbent Karen Liot Hill told the Bulletin that scrutinizing Ayotte’s judicial picks will be a top priority.

“I think that there’s going to be an appetite for true accountability on the Supreme Court,” Liot Hill said in an interview on election night.

The court has had multiple ethical scandals recently. In addition to MacDonald’s resignation, Anna Barbara Hantz Marconi, another justice, was convicted in late 2025 of criminal solicitation. Prosecutors said she attempted to wield her influence as a justice to convince former Gov. Chris Sununu to intervene in a criminal investigation into her husband, Geno Marconi, who served as the state’s port authority director. 

However, the new councilors will not be sworn in until January, and Ayotte has the ability to nominate someone before then while the council is still in Republican control. But the timeline would be tight. And even then, the governor has clashed with the current council, which has sought to flex its authority.

Ayotte said the development hasn’t changed how she’ll go about nominating the new justice.

“My standard is the same,” Ayotte said. “So, working with our judicial selection committee, working with them to just review when I want the best qualified candidates for the court.”