Andy Sanborn is a former New Hampshire State senator. He ran in the Republican primary to represent the 1st Congressional District. He was considered one of the most rightwing in the statehouse and was endorsed by Rand Paul and Ted Cruz. He lost to Eddie Edwards, who in turn lost to Chris Pappas, the Democrat.
Sanborn is currently under investigation for using COVID relief funds for his casino on personal expenses and may lose his casino license pending an investigation. State officials say they are investigating him for criminal charges, too.
Andy Sanborn’s campaign was hampered by controversy over more personal behavior including sexually harassing a intern. For example, during a discussion about an trip to Florida, the intern said “if she can’t go, I’ll go.” To which Sanborn said it depended on how well he, the intern, performed blow jobs. Another incident involving a woman was also reported. For a time, he was not allowed any aide until completing a sexual harassment class.
In a bizarre example of unfit behavior, he replied to a college student who wrote a constituent letter expressing his support for marijuana legalization. Sanford opposed it and wrote back to the student asking whether the organization that gave him a scholarship might demand he pay it back if they knew what he supported. Seriously, investigating a student to find out his scholarship info in order to threaten him? A constituent.
- New Hampshire Public Radio: Sanborn Made Reference to Sex Act In 2013 Conversation With Intern, According to N.H. Senate Lawyer
- Associated Press: Transcripts suggest second inappropriate comment by Sanborn
![Sanborn harassment allegations detailed - Concord Monitor [30 Day Embargo] (NH) - August 26, 2018 - page 1
August 26, 2018 | Concord Monitor [30 Day Embargo] (NH) | ETHAN DeWITT | Page 1
Monitor staff
It has become a recurring torment for the Andy Sanborn campaign: the Friday evening release of interview
transcripts from the attorney general.
Earlier this year Sanborn, a state senator and Republican candidate for the 1st Congressional District, was
tangentially tied up in an investigation into whether Senate leadership attempted to cover up “crass”
comments he made to an intern in 2013. That investigation revealed no wrongdoing on the part of top
officials. But the probe, which involved 18 witnesses, did capture a series of accusations from Sanborn’s
tenure in the Senate.
Throughout the gradual release of the transcripts – over 600 pages so far – Sanborn has consistently denied
wrongdoing and accused the Republican establishment of ginning up charges to take down his campaign.
Below is a review of the accusations and how Sanborn’s responses have evolved. The accusations
At this point, three separate incidents of alleged harassment have emerged from the transcripts, each with
varying levels of corroboration.
1) The intern comment. Sometime in February 2013, just ahead of the Senate weeklong break, Sanborn was
speaking to an intern from the University of New Hampshire about his vacation plans. His wife, Rep. Laurie
Sanborn, couldn’t join him; the House was not taking a corresponding break that year. The intern joked that
he could take her place. Sanborn gave a sexually explicit reply, asking the intern if he gives good oral sex.
According to multiple witness testimonies, comments were overheard by a legislative aide and the senate
legal counsel, Rick Lehmann, who reported it to the chief of staff and initiated an investigation. All involved
described the behavior as a joke, Lehmann testified, and no formal complaint was filed. But subsequent
testimony from aides suggested the intern was uncomfortable.
Rumors that the incident had led to a job for an intern and a gift of petty cash to buy his silence prompted the
attorney general’s review. The department of justice later found that no credible evidence existed of a bribe.
2) The pattern of harassment. Prominent within the most recent batch of transcripts was the testimony of a
female legislative aide – her name redacted – who said she was subjected to “almost daily” comments from
Sanborn on the way she dressed and looked, and that she had felt uncomfortable and changed her attire in
response. The aide was later encouraged to speak up about it by then-Sen. Jeanne Forrester. Through that
process, and conversations with the Senate chief of staff, the aide was eventually transferred out of Sanborn’s
office, serving Forrester instead.
Forrester, the aide in question, and multiple other staffers reported hearing about the behavior at the time.
3) The sexual comment. Tucked within the recently released testimony of Angela Leach, the present director
of Senate committee services and former assistant chief of staff, is a third example. Sometime around the
comment to the intern in 2013 and the pattern of harassment with the staffer, Sanborn made another
comment to a male staffer about a female staffer, Leach said. As that female aide left the room – the same
aide who accused Sanborn of commenting on her physical appearance – Sanborn turned to the male aide
and commented on her attractiveness. He suggested that the male aide probably wanted to have sex with
the female aide, Leach recalled hearing.
Reports of the incident were also heard by Senate Chief of Staff Kristy Merrill, she testified. But neither Merrill
nor Leach received the complaint first-hand. Leach said she was told by Jay Flanders, then the Senate Chief of
Staff.
When interviewed, Flanders was vague.](https://goppredator.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/image-122-1.png?w=1001)
August 26, 2018
