Tied state rep race in Rochester, NH, for the New York Times
January 17, 2023

ROCHESTER, NEW HAMPSHIRE - DEC 8, 2022. The tower of the United Methodist Church stands above other buildings on North Main Street (foreground) and South Main Street (near church) in downtown Rochester, New Hampshire, USA, on Thu., Dec. 8, 2022. Rochester's Ward 4 State Representative election in 2022 ended in a tie, with both incumbent Democratic representative Chuck Grassie and Republican candidate David Walker receiving 970 votes each. The election will be determined in a run-off election in 2023. CREDIT: M. Scott Brauer for the New York Times
ROCHESTER, NEW HAMPSHIRE - DEC 8, 2022. A mural reading "Greetings from Rochester" is seen on the exterior of the Salvation Army Thrift Store in Rochester, New Hampshire, USA, on Thu., Dec. 8, 2022. Rochester's Ward 4 State Representative election in 2022 ended in a tie, with both incumbent Democratic representative Chuck Grassie and Republican candidate David Walker receiving 970 votes each. The election will be determined in a run-off election in 2023. CREDIT: M. Scott Brauer for the New York Times

For the New York Times, I spent a day in Rochester, New Hampshire, a small town with a tied State Representative midterm race. The two candidates for Ward 4 rep live on the same street and have known each other for years and both received 970 votes. The winner will be determine in a run-off election in February. It was such a joy to just wander around and find what I could: an over-45 pickleball tournament, a comic store where political discussion is forbidden, scenes around the town, a bar where political discussion doesn’t happen often (one patron expressed surprise about the tied election; “I don’t see the divide here”), and one of the candidates, Republican David Walker, who has previously served as mayor and on the city council. Other parts of the story photographed by Ryan David Brown.

ROCHESTER, NEW HAMPSHIRE - DEC 8, 2022. Server Maggie Morneault brings food to customers at Windjammers Seafood Restaurant in Rochester, New Hampshire, USA, on Thu., Dec. 8, 2022. Rochester's Ward 4 State Representative election in 2022 ended in a tie, with both incumbent Democratic representative Chuck Grassie and Republican candidate David Walker receiving 970 votes each. The election will be determined in a run-off election in 2023. CREDIT: M. Scott Brauer for the New York Times
ROCHESTER, NEW HAMPSHIRE - DEC 8, 2022. A decal shows a heart in southeastern New Hampshire on the back window of a car in a parking lot in downtown Rochester, New Hampshire, USA, on Thu., Dec. 8, 2022. Rochester's Ward 4 State Representative election in 2022 ended in a tie, with both incumbent Democratic representative Chuck Grassie and Republican candidate David Walker receiving 970 votes each. The election will be determined in a run-off election in 2023. CREDIT: M. Scott Brauer for the New York Times
ROCHESTER, NEW HAMPSHIRE - DEC 8, 2022. Competitors wait for the final round of the age 45+ holiday pickleball tournament in the gym at Rochester Recreation and Arena in Rochester, New Hampshire, USA, on Thu., Dec. 8, 2022. "This is what people want to be doing, not playing bingo!" said Sharon Hadwen, 81, of Rochester, (second from right) from the sidelines after having been eliminated from the tournament. Rochester's Ward 4 State Representative election in 2022 ended in a tie, with both incumbent Democratic representative Chuck Grassie and Republican candidate David Walker receiving 970 votes each. The election will be determined in a run-off election in 2023. CREDIT: M. Scott Brauer for the New York Times
ROCHESTER, NEW HAMPSHIRE - DEC 8, 2022. Republican state representative candidate David Walker is seen in the City Council Chamber at Rochester City Hall in Rochester, New Hampshire, USA, on Thu., Dec. 8, 2022. Walker and opponent incumbent Democratic representative Chuck Grassie tied in the 2022 election for Rochester Ward 4 State Representative and will face a run-off election in 2023. Both candidates received 970 votes. Walker previously served as Rochester's mayor and on the Rochester City Council. CREDIT: M. Scott Brauer for the New York Times
ROCHESTER, NEW HAMPSHIRE - DEC 8, 2022. Republican state representative candidate David Walker is seen in Rochester City Hall in Rochester, New Hampshire, USA, on Thu., Dec. 8, 2022. Walker and opponent incumbent Democratic representative Chuck Grassie tied in the 2022 election for Rochester Ward 4 State Representative and will face a run-off election in 2023. Both candidates received 970 votes. Walker previously served as Rochester's mayor and on the Rochester City Council. CREDIT: M. Scott Brauer for the New York Times
ROCHESTER, NEW HAMPSHIRE - DEC 8, 2022. Employee Kyle Litchfield helps customers at Jetpack Comics, a busy comic book and game shop, in downtown Rochester, New Hampshire, USA, on Thu., Dec. 8, 2022. Store manager Richard Brunelle III says the store has a policy that political discussion is not welcome in the store and that other customers help enforce the policy. Rochester's Ward 4 State Representative election in 2022 ended in a tie, with both incumbent Democratic representative Chuck Grassie and Republican candidate David Walker receiving 970 votes each. The election will be determined in a run-off election in 2023. CREDIT: M. Scott Brauer for the New York Times
ROCHESTER, NEW HAMPSHIRE - DEC 8, 2022. An American flag is seen next to the Rochester Honor Roll outside Rochester City Hall in Rochester, New Hampshire, USA, on Thu., Dec. 8, 2022. Rochester's Ward 4 State Representative election in 2022 ended in a tie, with both incumbent Democratic representative Chuck Grassie and Republican candidate David Walker receiving 970 votes each. The election will be determined in a run-off election in 2023. CREDIT: M. Scott Brauer for the New York Times
ROCHESTER, NEW HAMPSHIRE - DEC 8, 2022. A statue of Reverend Amos Main stands in downtown Rochester, New Hampshire, USA, on Thu., Dec. 8, 2022. According to the plaque on the monument, Main was "the first settled minister of the First Congregational Church of the Province of Rochester" from 1737 until his death in 1760. Rochester's Ward 4 State Representative election in 2022 ended in a tie, with both incumbent Democratic representative Chuck Grassie and Republican candidate David Walker receiving 970 votes each. The election will be determined in a run-off election in 2023. CREDIT: M. Scott Brauer for the New York Times
ROCHESTER, NEW HAMPSHIRE - DEC 8, 2022. Window washer Ryan LeBlanc cleans the windows of Skele-tone Records in downtown Rochester, New Hampshire, USA, on Thu., Dec. 8, 2022. Rochester's Ward 4 State Representative election in 2022 ended in a tie, with both incumbent Democratic representative Chuck Grassie and Republican candidate David Walker receiving 970 votes each. The election will be determined in a run-off election in 2023. CREDIT: M. Scott Brauer for the New York Times
ROCHESTER, NEW HAMPSHIRE - DEC 8, 2022. People gather at the bar at Revolution Taproom and Grill in downtown Rochester, New Hampshire, USA, on Thu., Dec. 8, 2022. Rochester's Ward 4 State Representative election in 2022 ended in a tie, with both incumbent Democratic representative Chuck Grassie and Republican candidate David Walker receiving 970 votes each. The election will be determined in a run-off election in 2023. CREDIT: M. Scott Brauer for the New York Times
ROCHESTER, NEW HAMPSHIRE - DEC 8, 2022. Residential houses are seen in a neighborhood near downtown Rochester, New Hampshire, USA, on Thu., Dec. 8, 2022. Rochester's Ward 4 State Representative election in 2022 ended in a tie, with both incumbent Democratic representative Chuck Grassie and Republican candidate David Walker receiving 970 votes each. The election will be determined in a run-off election in 2023. CREDIT: M. Scott Brauer for the New York Times
ROCHESTER, NEW HAMPSHIRE - DEC 8, 2022. An antique car drives through a Cumberland Farms gas station parking lot in Rochester, New Hampshire, USA, on Thu., Dec. 8, 2022. Rochester's Ward 4 State Representative election in 2022 ended in a tie, with both incumbent Democratic representative Chuck Grassie and Republican candidate David Walker receiving 970 votes each. The election will be determined in a run-off election in 2023. CREDIT: M. Scott Brauer for the New York Times
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