At least $43,100 -- Includes campaign contributions from the 1996 state Senate race

• Search gambling contributions to the 1996 New Hampshire state Senate race

June 9, 1997

Staid by reputation, New England seems an unlikely battleground for gambling interests. Then again, Granite State gamblers already enjoy lotteries, charitable bingo, and pari-mutuel betting at the state's four tracks.

New Hampshire's Elections Division keeps only paper records of campaign contributions and starts charging 20 cents a page if you want records for more than one or two candidates. Lobbyists are required to register, report what they make, and disclose whether they spent money entertaining politicians, but, annoyingly, not the names of the politicians.

Oddly enough, the Western States Center in Helena, Mont., happened to have a database of contributions to New Hampshire state Senate candidates in 1996; the center ran a database search for us and found that racing and gaming interests gave at least $43,100. It's just one year, and just one house of the legislature, without gubernatorial, PAC, or lobbying data. But it still gives an indication of who wants what in New Hampshire.

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