State Senator Rebecca Perkins Kwoka elected leader of New Hampshire Senate Democrats

The New Hampshire Senate Democratic Caucus voted unanimously on Friday to elect State Senator Rebecca Perkins Kwoka of Portsmouth as the next Senate Democratic Leader following the electoral defeat of Senator Donna Soucy in Tuesday’s election.

Perkins Kwoka has been seen as a longtime champion of both housing and reproductive rights since joining the senate in 2020, serving as co-chair of the bipartisan legislative Housing Caucus, collaborating across party lines to address the state’s housing crisis.

She played a major role in the $50 million allocated in the 2024 state budget towards housing, and in 2023 led the passage of the “HOMEnibus” legislative housing package, which received bipartisan support and aimed to tackle the housing crisis by empowering municipalities to enhance workforce housing stock.

She is also a key LGBTQ+ leader in the state, likely serving as the first openly gay leader in the New Hampshire State Senate.

“Thank you to my colleagues for voting for me to serve as the next caucus leader. I am excited to collaborate with you in the coming months as we work together on our caucus priorities for the next legislative session,” said Senate Democratic Leader Perkins Kwoka. “Our state is facing challenges that I know we can solve through finding common ground and inviting different perspectives.

“At this moment, we as Democrats are also prepared to serve as a wall against what is coming from Republicans at the state and federal level. We are prepared on day one with a unified voice focussed on our state’s toughest challenges. Our caucus will keep fighting for policies that increase affordable housing and childcare, lower energy costs, and protect the fundamental rights and freedoms we hold dear.”

State Senator Cindy Rosenwald of Nashua will be staying on as Deputy Democratic Leader.

Party leaders hailed the appointment.

“Congratulations to Senator Rebecca Perkins Kwoka on her election as the next leader of the Senate Democratic Caucus,” said NHDP Chair Ray Buckley. “Senator Perkins Kwoka has been an unwavering advocate for Granite Staters in the State Senate, leading on issues like affordable housing, energy, voting rights, workforce development and reproductive rights — and with her experience and dedication for the people of New Hampshire, I know she – along with Senator Rosenwald – will lead the Senate Democratic Caucus with passion and conviction.”

Buckley also thanked Senator Soucy for her longtime service in the Senate.

“I also want to extend my deepest gratitude to Senator Donna Soucy for her years of service to the Senate Democratic Caucus and to New Hampshire. Senator Soucy has fought for Granite Staters for her entire career – advocating for increasing the minimum wage, supporting law enforcement and first responders, addressing the opioid crisis, and most recently being a key leader in passing bipartisan bail reform.”

Perkins Kwoka is a popular lawmaker, well liked by colleagues on both sides of the aisle. Her personal story of being 24-weeks pregnant while New Hampshire Republican lawmakers enacted a 24-week abortion ban in the state made her a central figure in the fight for reproductive rights in the state after the fall of Roe V. Wade.

“I was experiencing firsthand how frightening it is to think you won’t be allowed the full range of medical care that was available to me previously,” she told the Concord Monitor in 2023.