Portsmouth City Council, School Board Members, And Others, Take Oath Of Office

PORTSMOUTH, NH — On Monday, in the Portsmouth City Hall Council Chambers, the city council, school board, fire commission, and police commission members elected in November 2025 were sworn in for new terms.

The Inauguration program included music from the Portsmouth High School instrumental ensemble, conducted by Eric Gagnon, the National Anthem sung by Angelynne Hinson, the posting of colors by the Portsmouth Police and Fire Department Honor Guards, and an invocation and benediction by Reverend Dr. Jerrell Riggins of New Hope Baptist Church.

City Clerk Kelli Barnaby administered the oath of office to:

• City Council members, Mayor Deaglan McEachern, Assistant Mayor JoAnna Kelley, Kate Cook, John Tabor, Rich Blalock, Andrew Bagley, Beth Moreau, Michelle Flynn, and Annie Hopkins;
• Fire Commissioners Richard Gamester and Jennifer Mosher-Matthes;
• Police Commissioners Buzz Scherr and Jay Lieberman;
• School Board members Lisa Rapaport, Steve Adler, Nancy Novelline-Clayburgh, Brian French, and Jennifer Shump.

Mayor Deaglan McEachern, sworn in for his third term as mayor of the city of Portsmouth, cited the history of Portsmouth's role on the 250th anniversary and said, "When something needed doing, Portsmouth acted. The consent of the governed is our responsibility (as public servants) and the obligation of citizens who keep showing up: not reciting the Declaration but living it."

Submitted by the city of Portsmouth