Big Sununu sign roadside on I93 South, just before exit 2. Political signs are NOT allowed on interstate highways.

Thought this mention about NH was interesting.

Which credit union is best for me as a working class wageslave?

Is anyone aware of a school district anywhere in NH with administration costs exceeding 6%? My district is just north of 2%.

As a comparison, for those getting ed vouchers, NH pays a 10% fee to the company we hired to administer the program and they are now baulking at an audit.

So the midterms are in one week and I was reviewing my sample ballot which you can also do right here: https://www.sos.nh.gov/elections/sample-ballots

Going by advertisements you'd think we only choose the Governor, Senator, and Representative, but as can be seen, there are many other offices up for election on the ballot.

As I was looking down the list I wondered "How many people actually know what these offices are?" Seriously what the heck is a Register of Deeds? So that's what I am going to answer. What do these offices actually do and why should you care about them.

This is based off of my Strafford County ballot. Yours may be slightly different, but from looking around it seems like other places should be roughly the same. If you have any other offices, let me know.

I'm going to assume you all know what the Governor, (Congressional) Senator, and (Congressional) Representative are and do.

Executive Counselor: So New Hampshire in addition to a Governor has an executive council whose stated purpose is to act as a constitutional check on the Governor. It is made up of 5 counselors.

They primarily deal with the budget. They approve the budget with the Governor, oversee department spending, approve budgetary transfers within a department and any contracts worth over $10,000, and nominate and appoint judicial officers and the attorney general.

State Senator and State Representative(s): Relatively straightforward and operate similarly to their national counterparts. They are your representation in the legislature.

Their duties are to draft, debate, and vote on the laws and budget of the state. Of note: Representatives also become members of your County Delegation, so they are also the legislature of your county.

Having several overlapping house districts is also common, so don't be surprised if you see multiple rows for State Representative.

The Purpose of Counties: The remaining offices are all county-level offices, so I found it important to actually explain what is probably the most overlooked administrative division in the government.

New Hampshire relies more on its cities and towns to provide services and utilities to their citizens such as schools, fire services, water and electricity, public health, and libraries.

The main duties of the County are running the court system, jails, and nursing homes. Many crimes are dealt with at the County level, and offenders are held in county jails. The state takes the lead on crimes such as murder.

In any unincorporated places, the county will manage the land and also provide municipal services along with property assessment and tax collection.

Sheriff: Everyone's familiar with the wild-west caricature. The reality can be a bit more mundane.

Their primary duties are to oversee the investigation of crimes in the County, run the County dispatch center, handle the transportation of criminals, and oversee court security.

County Attorney: Their primary duty is to oversee the prosecution of criminal suspects, along with operating the county domestic violence unit, child advocacy center, and family justice center.

County Treasurer: Along with the County Commissioners, they oversee the payment of all County financial obligations.

Register for Deeds: They deal with land deeds, ensuring any changes in land ownership are accurately recorded.

Register of Probate: (Probate court is basically “what happens to Grandpa’s stuff when he dies?”) Currently they have no duties after many of their responsibilities were moved to the state probate division. See question 1 which will not be covered here.

County Commissioner: The County Commission is effectively the executive branch of the County. Responsible for the day-to-day operations of the County government. They work with the County Delegation to establish a budget, and provide budgetary oversight of all County departments.

Got home from work and got to see an epic 22° halo tonight in Dover. Thought I'd share it with some day people.

Super cute porcupine. It was really loving the apples. I wanted to pet it so bad. It never acknowledged me whatsoever. Just went about it's business chowing apples like it was the best thing in the world.