Op-ed: New Hampshire’s Political Engagement Paradox

The size of New Hampshire’s state legislature is quite unique among its peers, not just around the US, but around the globe. With 400 State Representatives and 24 Senators, we have more legislators than many developed countries, despite being one of the smallest states in the US. With approximately 3,500 people per representative and the first-in-the-nation presidential primary, New Hampshire is known for having very politically engaged citizens. 

But is this really the case? Who is allowed to be engaged in our political system and why? How can we make it more accessible, equitable, and accountable?

For starters, being a state representative isn’t a full-time job. It actually can’t be given that we are paid $200 for a 2 year term in office plus the cost of gas to and from Concord.

The problem is apparent, who can afford the time and money to be a state rep? Most of the time, it’s wealthy people, retired people, or both. Which explains why the average age of the NH legislature is over 60, making it one of if not the oldest in the entire country. Those who aren’t tend to have flexible jobs which are often not easy to find. Imagine asking your boss to let you take 1 to 3 days off of work every week for 6 months and still be able to pay the bills. 

Balancing state rep work as a parent, young person, or someone living on their own is exceedingly difficult. Even if you can make it work for 1 day per week, your committee assignment could double or triple the number of days you need to be in Concord for no additional compensation. You effectively lose money as a legislator.

While in principle, the idea of a volunteer legislature is honorable, reality doesn’t line up with that. Republicans and some Democrats have consistently voted against bills that would make the work more accessible like remote participation, protections for full-time workers to serve as state reps, or increasing pay to a manageable standard.

I’ve been through this entire process myself while determining if I would even be able to run for office. I know so many people who would be incredibly qualified representatives, but can’t afford the time or money to serve with its current structure. Representatives regularly have to resign mid-term or after their term is over due to this time requirement. This is exactly what happened to the representative serving in my district before I ran.

A side problem created from having 400 representatives is how small the districts are. Dover alone has 11 state representatives, many of which represent a single ward. By law you are required to reside in the ward you represent, and for a renter like myself it’s incredibly hard to find somewhere to move within my district. In many cases, a representative would have to resign if they moved across the street. Districts are so small that it’s often difficult to find anyone in the district willing to run, and people sign up at the last minute just to have their name on the ballot without intending to actively serve.

New Hampshire legislators also lack many resources to understand the bills we vote on. Given there are upwards of 1000 bills every year, it would be impossible to know anything in-depth about a vast majority of them. There is minimal capacity for staff to help educate you, and given that it’s effectively a part-time job, there isn’t nearly enough time to research them yourself. 

Legislators are left with the brief summary provided by their caucus to vote on issues we don’t truly understand. We vote on issues like healthcare access, education, or business almost on gut instinct and a summary for the vast majority of bills. Bills that could be won or lost by just a few votes.

To begin addressing these issues, we must consider things like a modest stipend increase and hybrid participation to make serving as a representative more accessible. Preventing people from being fired for serving, as proposed in HB347, would go a long way to allow younger people and less well-off people to run for office. Consolidating smaller districts would enable more renters to serve, and more staff resources would help educate representatives on the issues we vote on. All of which would help legislators better serve the people of New Hampshire.

These issues are ingrained in the structure of our legislature, and they have remained stubborn despite many attempts at reform. There is no one way to solve this overnight, but we should be having the conversation. If we want New Hampshire’s legislature to truly reflect the voices of all Granite Staters, we must prioritize reforms that make participation feasible for everyone, not just the privileged few.