Executive Council CANDIDATES
A Seat at the Table was designed by Annie to support women running for state and local office in New Hampshire, helping to build a bench of progressive leaders for generations to come. The initiative, named after the famed expression, “If you don’t have a seat at the table, you may be on the menu,” aims to highlight candidates who support women’s autonomy and reproductive rights in the Second District.
Below is the full list of candidates that Annie endorsed to take ‘a seat at the table’ this November in the Executive Council.
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Cinde Warmington, District 2
Executive Council District 2 candidate Cinde Warmington (D-Concord) is a lifelong health care advocate and Democratic activist. She has forty years of professional experience in health care—twenty years in laboratory medicine and hospitals, and twenty as a health care attorney. Cinde has also spent 20 years working to elect Democrats, serving as a town committee chair, county officer, and currently as chair of the N.H. Democratic Party’s Platform Committee.
Mindi Messmer, District 3
Mindi Messmer (D-Rye) is an experienced legislator who brought her scientific expertise and perspective as a small business owner to bear to create and pass policy to clean up the environment, drinking water, and protect public health.
As we face unprecedented public health consequences due to high rates of cancer and chronic disease and the COVID-19 pandemic, it is important to address these challenges to minimize economic impacts. Mindi’s experience as a scientist identifying and solving problems and then bringing together public and private stakeholders to address these important issues is exactly what is needed on the Executive Council right now.
District 3 includes the towns of Atkinson, Pelham, Salem, and Windham in the Second Congressional District.
Deb Pignatelli, District 5
Deb Pignatelli (D-Nashua) has spent 23 years in elected office - 5 years in the House of Representatives, 10 years in the State Senate, and then 8 years on the Governor's Council. While in the State House and the State Senate, she sponsored and advocated for legislative initiatives increasing funding for education, funding statewide kindergarten, reforming campaign finance laws, enhancing environmental protection, improving the foster care system, bringing a Legal Assistance Office to Nashua, and curbing violent crime, including family violence.
While a State Representative, she served on the Children, Youth and Elderly, and Appropriations Committees. Deb served as Assistant Minority Leader in the House of Representatives and as Democratic Whip and Vice President for Policy in the Senate.
Deb has been designated as one of the ten most powerful women in New Hampshire by New Hampshire Editions Magazine, have received the Meritorious Service Award from the New Hampshire Women's Lobby, the John F. Kennedy Award from the Hillsborough County Democratic Committee, the Anita and Norman Freedman Award and the Eleanor Roosevelt Award given by the New Hampshire Democratic Party.
In 2005, she received the William E. Paine, II award for her work preventing domestic and family violence. Deb also received an Award recognizing her excellence in river and watershed conservation from local groups representing dozens of New Hampshire Communities along the Contoocook and North Branch, Lamprey, Lower and Upper Merrimack, and Swift Rivers.
Before running for office, Deb served as the Executive Director of the Nashua Girl's Club, now Girl's, Inc., and the Director of Tenant Services for the Nashua Housing Authority.