Mark Connolly

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Mark Connolly
Image of Mark Connolly

Education

Bachelor's

Dartmouth College

Graduate

Northwestern University

Personal
Profession
Business owner
Contact

Mark Connolly was a 2016 Democratic candidate for governor of New Hampshire. He announced his candidacy on November 5, 2015, holding events in Hanover, Manchester and New Castle, N.H.[1] He was defeated in the primary election on September 13, 2016. Connolly died on April 13, 2019.[2]

Connolly previously considered a gubernatorial run in 2012.[3]

Biography

Education

A native of Bedford, New Hampshire, Connolly received an undergraduate degree at Dartmouth College and a graduate degree at the Kellogg Graduate School of Management at Northwestern University.[3] He was a former state representative. From 2002 to 2010, he was the deputy secretary of state and the director of securities regulation for New Hampshire. Connolly was the owner and principal adviser of New Castle Investment.[1][3]

Elections

2016

See also: New Hampshire gubernatorial election, 2016

Connolly filed to run in the Democratic primary for governor of New Hampshire in 2016.[1] He competed with former Portsmouth mayor Steve Marchand, author Derek Dextraze, Executive Councilor Colin Van Ostern, and radio host Ian Freeman in the September 13 Democratic primary election.

Colin Van Ostern defeated Steve Marchand, Mark Connolly , Ian Freeman and Derek Dextraze in the New Hampshire Democratic primary for governor.

New Hampshire Democratic primary for governor, 2016
Candidate Vote % Votes
Green check mark transparent.png Colin Van Ostern 51.99% 37,694
Steve Marchand 25.29% 18,338
Mark Connolly 20.47% 14,839
Ian Freeman 1.47% 1,069
Derek Dextraze 0.77% 557
Total Votes (300 of 300 precincts reporting) 72,497
Source: AP

Endorsements

  • State Senator Lou D'Allesandro (D-Manchester)[1]
  • Concord entrepreneur Ben Kelley[1]
  • Mary Rauh, former chair of the New Hampshire Women's Fund and co-chair of President Obama's New Hampshire campaign[1]
  • Philanthropist Maxine Morse[1]

Campaign themes

2016

At his campaign announcement, Connolly focused on the issues of education, innovation and job creation. He said, “We’re facing critical decisions about our state’s future, and we need a pragmatic, progressive, and independent leader to help build on the progress achieved by Governors Lynch and Hassan."[1]

He added,

I believe we’re at our best when we put aside our differences, come together, and turn difficult challenges into exciting opportunities. My vision for this state is clear: we must provide our kids with a world-class education, foster a culture of innovation to re-position our state as a 21st-century economic and business leader and create quality jobs that ensure the next generation of Granite Staters can build careers and raise families of their own right here in New Hampshire.[4]

He continued, “Throughout constant transformations and reinventions, we’ve never lost hold of the fundamental values that we hold dear in the Granite State—freedom, liberty, and the promise that, if you work hard and play by the rules, you’ll be given the opportunity to succeed.”[1]

Connolly's website included the following positions:

On education:

  • Build a world-class education beginning in early childhood and culminating with our students leaving school with career-ready skills.
  • Invest in STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math) programs so our students are prepared for careers in advanced manufacturing, cloud computing and other vital parts of New Hampshire’s innovation economy.
  • Promote collaborative engagement between our business community and our educational system, from grade school through our University System.[5][4]

On the economy:

  • Diversify our state’s energy base with a focus on renewable and clean energy such as wind, solar, hydro, biomass, and natural gas so that by the year 2050, renewables make up fifty percent of New Hampshire’s energy.
  • Increase government transparency, modernize state government and strengthen our campaign finance laws and disclosure so government works for you, not the special interests.
  • Bring passenger rail to Nashua and Manchester and improve our state’s infrastructure, especially its rural roads and bridges.
  • Develop and implement ten-year strategic economic plan for New Hampshire.
  • Ensure companies have an educated workforce to fill their growing needs, beginning in high school with internships and job training.
  • Foster a friendly climate where business, education and government work together to educate our students and give them opportunities to allow them to stay in our state to live, work, and raise a family.[5][4]

On healthcare:

  • Fight for a woman’s right to make her own healthcare decisions and fully fund Planned Parenthood.
  • Make permanent the expansion of Medicaid for more than 48,000 Granite Staters.
  • Continue Governor Hassan’s legacy of strong leadership in battling our state’s opioid crisis through a combination of education, treatment, and enforcement in a coordinated way at the federal, state and municipal levels ... .[5][4]

On rights and values:

  • Fight to ensure women receive equal pay for equal work and advocate for Paid Family Leave
  • Lead the fight in protecting the rights of our LGBT friends, families and neighbors.
  • Protect our working families by standing up for organized labor and voting so-called "Right-to-Work" legislation and increasing the state's minimum wage.
  • Honor the promise to our retirees and ensure their quality of life remains high, their streets safe and New Hampshire's natural beauty protected.[5][4]

Personal

Note: Please contact us if the personal information below requires an update.
Connolly was a native of Bedford, N.H., and lived in New Castle, N.H. He wrote a book in 2011 called Cover-Up, about a Ponzi scheme at a mortgage company and the government's failure to regulate the incident.[1][3]

See also

New Hampshire State Executive Elections News and Analysis
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External links

Footnotes