Brian Blackden
From Ballotpedia
This page was current at the end of the individual's last campaign covered by Ballotpedia. Please contact us with any updates.
Brian Blackden (Republican Party) ran for election to the New Hampshire House of Representatives to represent Merrimack 28. He lost in the general election on November 5, 2024.
Blackden completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2024. Click here to read the survey answers.
Biography
Brian Blackden was born in Haverhill, Massachusetts. He graduated from Northern Essex Community College in 1982 and earned a bachelor's degree from Franklin Pierce College in 1998. His career experience includes working as a businessman, paralegal, police officer, detective sergeant, firefighter EMT, building contractor, and security contractor/consultant. Blackden has been affiliated with Concord Grange, Fraternal Order of Eagles, and the Concord Christmas parade and tree lighting.[1]
Elections
2024
See also: New Hampshire House of Representatives elections, 2024
General election
General election for New Hampshire House of Representatives Merrimack 28
Jim Snodgrass defeated Brian Blackden in the general election for New Hampshire House of Representatives Merrimack 28 on November 5, 2024.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | Jim Snodgrass (D) | 58.2 | 3,419 |
 | Brian Blackden (R)  | 41.7 | 2,449 | |
| Other/Write-in votes | 0.0 | 2 | ||
| Total votes: 5,870 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
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Democratic primary election
Democratic primary for New Hampshire House of Representatives Merrimack 28
Jim Snodgrass advanced from the Democratic primary for New Hampshire House of Representatives Merrimack 28 on September 10, 2024.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Jim Snodgrass | 99.1 | 1,127 |
| Other/Write-in votes | 0.9 | 10 | ||
| Total votes: 1,137 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Republican primary election
Republican primary for New Hampshire House of Representatives Merrimack 28
Brian Blackden advanced from the Republican primary for New Hampshire House of Representatives Merrimack 28 on September 10, 2024.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Brian Blackden | 99.2 | 615 |
| Other/Write-in votes | 0.8 | 5 | ||
| Total votes: 620 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Endorsements
Ballotpedia did not identify endorsements for Blackden in this election.
Campaign themes
2024
Ballotpedia survey responses
See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection
Brian Blackden completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2024. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Blackden's responses. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.
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I am an average citizen, who is concerned about runaway government and excessive spending. I will not vote for any bill and I have not thoroughly read and convinced it is in the best interest of the citizens of the state. I am an issue, oriented voter, I will not vote for a Republican Bill because it is Republican, every bill, no matter who it is sponsored by will get the same scrutiny. I disagree with voting party line as the system of government should be bipartisan. The constitution of the state, and the constitution of the federal government should be taken into account as the rule of law. The legislature is the lawmaking arm of government, and I disagree with administrative rule becoming law that has never been passed by the legislative body.
- Education: I believe in educational choice, be it public, private, or homeschooling.
- Taxes: I am against a New Hampshire sales tax, and I believe current fees and taxation can run our government if we look at things on a line item rather then putting pet projects at the end of a bill that has nothing to do with that particular item.
- Law making ability: Law making ability is that of the legislature. I disagree with agencies, making administrative rule, into law. I do not believe that judicial arena is a place where laws should be made, as they should be the interpreters of law.
Law making ability is a passion, as we elect representatives to make laws, not judges to make law, nor agency heads to make administrative law have the power of legislatively made law. People for far too long, have stepped outside the boundaries of their jobs and have taken away what our founding fathers decided on as far as who makes laws.
Frank Serpico. He took on a corrupt system that was supposed to be protecting the public, but was not. He nearly paid with it with his life. In my opinion, he is the type of person, through his actions, that should be emulated by public officials.
Integrity and willingness to examine fully and not just sign off on legislation. It must be read and understood as beneficial for the public. Campaign funding should be scrutinized and a public official should not take funds that are linked to lobby groups that expect a quid pro quo.
In my time as a paralegal, I found it extremely important to read the fine print, and all of the print in context. I believe I have that ability and that is what is needed in government.
To make rational, fully informed decisions prior to voting on an instituting law.
To be true to the position, and doing it in such a manner that the citizens benefit and are not held down.
Serpico. Because Frank is a person who is or should be a role model to everybody.
I live in reality, I’m not really into fiction.
Scars in heaven, by Casting Crowns.
Walking. I have had a severe back injury that until this year has never been able to be corrected. It began in 1994 and I have used crutches, braces, PT, and a wheelchair during the time and experienced many obstacles and pain that made a grown man cry in public just trying to walk. I have recently had surgery/procedure number 29 that hopefully will be the last as I am now walking with an imbedded spinal cord stimulator, after fusion failures, and am now walking with manageable pain. However, through it all I have learned a wealth of information about pain, physical barrier issues, drug use, and through the interaction and education of some good doctors, the ability to determine physiological need of medication versus what I perceive to be peoples psychological desire of opioids and their effects, or lack thereof, due to differing levels of pain and those who choose recreational use (Of which I am highly against). I have been on levels of opioids that would literally kill some people and recognize that some people are almost immune from receiving relief from certain medications and some medical professionals just throw more at the problem rather than finding the solution that works. Those professionals are in the minority. I, by force, have a high level of understanding of what I see as use and misuse by people due to my experiences.
The governor and a state legislature should be on the same page as far as lawmaking requirements. While governors and legislature may be from different political parties, their main focus should be the benefit of the citizens of the state and their actions should reflect that.
Illegal drug use and homelessness. Both of these issues lead to a criminal justice overload and drug issues should be dealt with severely and homelessness should be dealt with empathetically.
No. That seems to be the biggest problem in government today is that our politicians think of it as a lifetime job and try to either benefit themselves or certain groups. An outsider with common sense would make a better legislator than someone who has been in government or politics for 50 years.
You must build common sense relationships regardless of party as the citizens will either benefit or suffer due to a lack of understanding or a willingness to compromise and work together.
No. There is no one person who can possibly have agreed with you on all political levels. I am my own person and while I may like a previous legislator, I would not be model myself after any prior, but would work with all legislators to find an appropriate common ground.
Each legislator or candidate hears in sees stories on a daily basis. Many are touching, memorable, or impactful. To choose one would be doing the rest, a disservice, which is why a person in this job has to have a macro view of life and by taking in all one has seen and by keeping them all in mind would make that person a good officeholder.
I’m not really a joke teller.
I would rather have a consensus on the use of emergency powers, as using a majority opinion is valued to me rather than a single person who may not have the best understanding or judgment in a situation, or who may be being advised by a certain few with an agenda.
Judicial term limits or term reviews and oversight.
I was asked to run by a member of the New Hampshire Republican committee.
Judicial, criminal justice.
It clearly should be an open book and people should not have to fight to get the information that should be readily available to the public.
Citizen input is always important and I have no problem with a state ballot initiative process. If that is a way to make the citizens feel they have input and say in the way, their status is run, if they have a majority group to forward a ballot initiative, I think that is a good thing. The people are the overseers of the legislature, and their views should not be disregarded.
Note: Ballotpedia reserves the right to edit Candidate Connection survey responses. Any edits made by Ballotpedia will be clearly marked with [brackets] for the public. If the candidate disagrees with an edit, he or she may request the full removal of the survey response from Ballotpedia.org. Ballotpedia does not edit or correct typographical errors unless the candidate's campaign requests it.
Campaign finance summary
Note: The finance data shown here comes from the disclosures required of candidates and parties. Depending on the election or state, this may represent only a portion of all the funds spent on their behalf. Satellite spending groups may or may not have expended funds related to the candidate or politician on whose page you are reading this disclaimer. Campaign finance data from elections may be incomplete. For elections to federal offices, complete data can be found at the FEC website. Click here for more on federal campaign finance law and here for more on state campaign finance law.
See also
2024 Elections
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ Information submitted to Ballotpedia through the Candidate Connection survey on August 6, 2024
Current members of the New Hampshire House of Representatives
Representatives
Belknap 1
Tom Ploszaj (R)
Belknap 3
Belknap 4
Travis Toner (R)
Carroll 5
Jonathan Smith (R)
Carroll 7
Glenn Cordelli (R)
Cheshire 1
Dylan Germana (D)
Cheshire 11
Denis Murphy (R)
Cheshire 12
Dick Thackston (R)
Cheshire 13
Richard Ames (D)
Cheshire 14
John Hunt (R)
Cheshire 16
James Gruber (D)
Cheshire 17
Jennifer Rhodes (R)
Cheshire 2
Dru Fox (D)
Cheshire 3
Philip Jones (D)
Cheshire 4
Jodi Newell (D)
Cheshire 5
Lucy Weber (D)
Cheshire 7
Terri O'Rorke (D)
Cheshire 8
Lucius Parshall (D)
Cheshire 9
Coos 2
Arnold Davis (R)
Coos 3
Mike Ouellet (R)
Coos 4
Seth King (R)
Coos 5
Peter Morency (R)
Coos 6
Michael Murphy (R)
Coos 7
Lori Korzen (R)
Grafton 10
John Sellers (R)
Grafton 11
Lex Berezhny (R)
Grafton 13
Laurel Stavis (D)
Grafton 14
George Sykes (D)
Grafton 15
Thomas Cormen (D)
Grafton 16
David Fracht (D)
Grafton 17
Susan Almy (D)
Grafton 18
Donald McFarlane (R)
Grafton 2
Jared Sullivan (D)
Grafton 3
Jerry Stringham (D)
Grafton 4
Heather Baldwin (D)
Grafton 6
Linda Franz (R)
Grafton 7
Janet Lucas (D)
Grafton 9
Thomas Oppel (D)
Hillsborough 12
Bill Boyd (R)
Julie Miles (R)
Maureen Mooney (R)
Nancy Murphy (D)
Jeanine Notter (R)
Adam Presa (R)
Rosemarie Rung (D)
Wendy Thomas (D)
Hillsborough 13
Dillon Dumont (R)
Cathy Kenny (R)
Andrew Prout (R)
Jeremy Slottje (R)
Jordan Ulery (R)
Robert Wherry (R)
Hillsborough 2
Loren Foxx (D)
Ted Gorski (R)
Linda Gould (R)
Brian Labrie (R)
Kristin Noble (R)
John Schneller (R)
Hillsborough 24
Hillsborough 27
Mary Murphy (R)
Hillsborough 31
Molly Howard (D)
Hillsborough 37
Megan Murray (D)
Hillsborough 45
Jack Flanagan (R)
Merrimack 1
Ricky Devoid (R)
Merrimack 11
Matthew Pitaro (R)
Merrimack 14
Dan McGuire (R)
Merrimack 15
Tracy Bricchi (D)
Merrimack 16
Connie Lane (D)
Merrimack 17
Beth Richards (D)
Merrimack 18
Jim MacKay (D)
Merrimack 19
Mary Wallner (D)
Merrimack 2
Gregory Hill (R)
Merrimack 20
Eric Gallager (D)
Merrimack 21
Timothy Soucy (D)
Merrimack 22
James Roesener (D)
Merrimack 23
Merryl Gibbs (D)
Merrimack 24
Matthew Hicks (D)
Merrimack 25
James Thibault (R)
Merrimack 26
Alvin See (R)
Merrimack 28
Jim Snodgrass (D)
Merrimack 29
Kris Schultz (D)
Merrimack 30
Gary Woods (D)
Merrimack 6
Tom Schamberg (D)
Rockingham 13
Charles Foote (R)
Erica Layon (R)
David Love (R)
David Milz (R)
Jodi Nelson (R)
Stephen Pearson (R)
John Potucek (R)
Richard Tripp (R)
Rockingham 16
Tom Dolan (R)
Ron Dunn (R)
David Lundgren (R)
Wayne MacDonald (R)
Sherman Packard (R)
Kristine Perez (R)
Doug Thomas (R)
Rockingham 19
Susan Porcelli (R)
Rockingham 21
Rockingham 22
Kate Murray (D)
Rockingham 23
Jim Maggiore (D)
Rockingham 25
Lorie Ball (R)
Tanya Donnelly (R)
John Janigian (R)
Dennis Mannion (R)
Joe Sweeney (R)
John Sytek (R)
Rockingham 26
Buzz Scherr (D)
Rockingham 27
Gerry Ward (D)
Rockingham 28
Carrie Sorensen (D)
Rockingham 3
Mary Ford (R)
Rockingham 32
Rockingham 33
Alexis Simpson (D)
Rockingham 34
Mark Pearson (R)
Rockingham 35
Julius Soti (R)
Rockingham 36
J D Bernardy (R)
Rockingham 37
James Meuse (D)
Rockingham 38
Peggy Balboni (D)
Rockingham 39
Ned Raynolds (D)
Rockingham 40
Linda McGrath (R)
Rockingham 6
Eric Turer (D)
Rockingham 7
Laurence Miner (R)
Rockingham 8
Sayra DeVito (R)
Strafford 13
Peter Bixby (D)
Strafford 14
Peter Schmidt (D)
Strafford 15
Alice Wade (D)
Strafford 16
Gary Gilmore (D)
Strafford 17
Strafford 18
Strafford 20
Allan Howland (D)
Strafford 3
Susan DeRoy (R)
Strafford 5
Thomas Kaczynski (R)
Strafford 6
Strafford 7
Aidan Ankarberg (I)
Strafford 8
Strafford 9
Amy Malone (D)
Sullivan 1
Brian Sullivan (D)
Sullivan 2
William Palmer (D)
Sullivan 4
Judy Aron (R)
Sullivan 5
George Grant (R)
Sullivan 7
Margaret Drye (R)
Republican Party (219)
Democratic Party (177)
Independent (1)
