Chris Sununu endorsed Republican former U.S. Senator Kelly Ayotte as his successor as governor.

“Kelly Ayotte knows that NH has set the gold standard for the country with strong fiscal management, limited government and local control,” Sununu posted on X on Wednesday afternoon. “She is the Republican who will win in November and take off in January. I am an enthusiastic supporter!”

Sununu has hinted for some time that he might support him. Ultimately, he endorsed Ayotte, the front-runner, rather than Chuck Morse, who led the New Hampshire Senate during Sununu’s tenure, including as Senate president from 2020 to 2022. Morse briefly served as acting governor for three days before Sununu took office.

Morse responded by calling the support “weird” and saying it was no surprise given their shared political views.

Morse and Sununu have disagreed several times in recent years on issues such as masks during the pandemic, transgender rights and issues, and their support for former President Donald Trump.

“Republicans in New Hampshire know who has worked for them in the trenches and who has worked for themselves in the boardroom. I think they will give that endorsement as much weight as they did the governor’s endorsement of Nikki Haley,” Morse said. “We disagree today on who should be the next governor. I would take my track record of ideas, views and accomplishments over Chris Sununu’s any day.”

Ayotte has received numerous other high-profile endorsements, including from the New Hampshire Police Association and the State Employees Union.

In a statement, Ayotte warned that her Democratic opponents, Joyce Craig and Cinde Warmington, were taking the state in the wrong direction. Ayotte promised to keep New Hampshire on the “Sununu path.”

“I am proud to have Governor Sununu’s support and look forward to working with him to spread our message of keeping our state safe, prosperous and free to voters across our great state,” Ayotte said. “Under Governor Sununu’s leadership, New Hampshire is the best place in the country to live, work and raise a family, and when I’m governor, I will work tirelessly to keep us moving in the right direction.”

Charlotte Matherly is the statehouse reporter for the Concord Monitor and Monadnock Ledger-Transcript in partnership with Report for America. Follow her on X at @charmatherly or email her