Lily Tang Williams, the Republican Congressional candidate for New Hampshire District 2, fields questions during the Candidate Conversation hosted by the Greater Nashua Chamber of Commerce on Oct. 19. Telegraph photo by CHRISTOPHER ROBERSON

NASHUA – With Election Day drawing closer, Congresswoman Maggie Goodlander (D-NH) and Republican challenger Lily Tang Williams continued their 2024 rematch, going before the Greater Nashua Chamber of Commerce on Oct. 19.

During the first of two Candidate Conversations, Goodlander and Tang Williams touched on hot button topics including housing, healthcare and education.

Speaking about the housing crisis, Goodlander touted the 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act, which became law on July 11. Spearheaded by Congressman French Hill (R-AR), the law is designed to bolster the housing stock, reduce construction costs and increase affordability.

“It’s going to clear the way and cut a whole bunch of red tape,” said Goodlander, adding that 96 percent of renters cannot afford single-family homes. “Making life affordable is my number one priority.”

She also spoke about the housing shortage in New Hampshire, saying 9,000 new homes are currently needed.

Congresswoman Maggie Goodlander (D-NH) fields questions during the Candidate Conversation hosted by the Greater Nashua Chamber of Commerce on Oct. 19. Telegraph photo by CHRISTOPHER ROBERSON

Tang Williams said the housing crisis began during the COVID-19 pandemic, which emerged in March 2020.

“All the big blue states locked up,” she said, adding that housing construction was halted during that time.

She also said developers are already governed by a score of building regulations.

“Do not add any more red tape for new construction,” said Tang Williams.

Regarding healthcare, she said Medicare has been rife with fraud. She was also critical of the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022, which was signed into law by then-President Joe Biden.

“The Inflation Reduction Act did nothing but drive up inflation,” she said.

Rather, Tang Williams mentioned the benefits of direct primary care centers.

“It’s very affordable and it’s local,” she said.

According to the American Academy of Family Physicians, the cost of individual monthly memberships range from $20 to $150. According to NextMD, there are 28 DPCs in 26 communities including Merrimack, Nashua, Amherst and Bedford.

Goodlander spoke about the anticipated impacts that the Big Beautiful Bill will have on healthcare.

H.R. 1 is expected to cut federal health insurance by $880 billion by 2034 and put 15 million Americans at risk of losing healthcare coverage. In Nashua alone, there are 16,778 residents who rely on the federal government for health insurance, many of whom are children.

“It has triggered the biggest cuts to Medicare in American history,” said Goodlander, adding that her constituents use the words “devastating” and “catastrophic” to describe the law, which President Donald Trump signed into law on July 4, 2025.

Goodlander also highlighted the importance of community health centers, calling attention to Lamprey Health Care and the Greater Nashua Mental Health Center.

“Our community health centers are the best in the business,” she said.

On the education front, Tang Williams said test scores have been dropping in school districts across the nation.

“We cannot compete on the world stage,” she said. “We need to do better as Americans.”

She also said parents deserve to have greater input on decisions regarding curriculum.

Goodlander said college has become much more expensive during the past two years. Yet, there is still a growing need for nurses, firefighters and childcare workers.

“Education is the engine of our economy,” she said.

On the topic of energy, Tang Williams said New Hampshire is part of ISO New England which oversees the region’s power grid — and consists of blue states. She also said that early in the Biden Administration, the order was given to stop the Keystone Pipeline.

As artificial intelligence continues to develop, Goodlander said people, not robots, must remain in control. She said that in 1996, regulations governing the Internet were just beginning to emerge when they were shut down by Big Tech. She said that cannot happen again.

However, Goodlander said Speaker of the House Mike Johnson (R-LA) has made it clear that he does not want anyone working on bills that would affect AI.

The second Candidate Conversation will feature Republican Gov. Kelly Ayotte and Democratic challenger Cinde Warmington. The event will be held on Oct. 27 from 7:30 to 9:30 a.m. at DoubleTree Nashua, 2 Somerset Pkwy.