Prominent Democratic operative Joe Grandmaison dies at 79

PORTSMOUTH, N.H. (AP) — A New Hampshire Democrat who ran numerous campaigns, J. Joseph “Joe” Grandmaison has died at 79. His brother said Grandmaison died from Parkinson’s disease Saturday in Portsmouth. Grandmaison ran a number of campaigns over the years and was an informal adviser to others, including President Bill Clinton. The Nashua native cut his teeth working on the campaign of Democratic presidential nominee George McGovern in 1972. That was just the start of many campaigns with his fingerprints on them. U.S. Sen. Jeanne Shaheen called him a “political legend.”