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Matt Coker

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Matt Coker
Image of Matt Coker
New Hampshire House of Representatives Belknap 2
Tenure

2024 - Present

Term ends

2026

Years in position

0

Prior offices
New Hampshire House of Representatives Belknap 2

Compensation

Base salary

$100/year

Per diem

$No per diem is paid

Elections and appointments
Last elected

November 5, 2024

Education

Bachelor's

Liberty University, 2012

Personal
Birthplace
Cheyenne, Wyo
Profession
Pilot
Contact

Matt Coker (Republican Party) is a member of the New Hampshire House of Representatives, representing Belknap 2. He assumed office on December 18, 2024. His current term ends on December 2, 2026.

Coker (Republican Party) ran for re-election to the New Hampshire House of Representatives to represent Belknap 2. He won in the general election on November 5, 2024.

Coker completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2024. Click here to read the survey answers.

On February 8, 2024, Coker left the Democratic Party and joined the Republican Party.[1] To read more about legislators who have switched parties, click here.

Biography

Matthew Coker was born in Cheyenne, Wyoming. He earned a bachelor's degree from Liberty University in 2012. His career experience includes working as an airline pilot. He has been affiliated with ALPA.[2][3][4]

The following table lists bills this person sponsored as a legislator, according to BillTrack50 and sorted by action history. Bills are sorted by the date of their last action. The following list may not be comprehensive. To see all bills this legislator sponsored, click on the legislator's name in the title of the table.


Committee assignments

Note: This membership information was last updated in September 2023. Ballotpedia completes biannual updates of committee membership. If you would like to send us an update, email us at: editor@ballotpedia.org.

2023-2024

Coker was assigned to the following committees:


Elections

2024

See also: New Hampshire House of Representatives elections, 2024

General election

General election for New Hampshire House of Representatives Belknap 2 (2 seats)

Incumbent Matt Coker and Matthew Lunney defeated Lynn Thomas and Ben Brookmyer in the general election for New Hampshire House of Representatives Belknap 2 on November 5, 2024.

Candidate
%
Votes
Image of Matt Coker
Matt Coker (R) Candidate Connection
 
32.1
 
2,648
Image of Matthew Lunney
Matthew Lunney (R) Candidate Connection
 
25.6
 
2,112
Lynn Thomas (D)
 
23.2
 
1,913
Ben Brookmyer (D)
 
19.1
 
1,579
 Other/Write-in votes
 
0.1
 
8

Total votes: 8,260
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for New Hampshire House of Representatives Belknap 2 (2 seats)

Lynn Thomas and Ben Brookmyer advanced from the Democratic primary for New Hampshire House of Representatives Belknap 2 on September 10, 2024.

Candidate
%
Votes
Lynn Thomas
 
57.1
 
534
Ben Brookmyer
 
42.2
 
395
 Other/Write-in votes
 
0.6
 
6

Total votes: 935
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Republican primary election

Republican primary for New Hampshire House of Representatives Belknap 2 (2 seats)

Incumbent Matt Coker and Matthew Lunney defeated Edward Samuel Twaddell III in the Republican primary for New Hampshire House of Representatives Belknap 2 on September 10, 2024.

Candidate
%
Votes
Image of Matt Coker
Matt Coker Candidate Connection
 
53.3
 
749
Image of Matthew Lunney
Matthew Lunney Candidate Connection
 
24.5
 
345
Edward Samuel Twaddell III
 
22.0
 
309
 Other/Write-in votes
 
0.2
 
3

Total votes: 1,406
Candidate Connection = 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 Coker in this election.

2022

See also: New Hampshire House of Representatives elections, 2022

General election

General election for New Hampshire House of Representatives Belknap 2 (2 seats)

Lisa Smart and Matt Coker defeated Sandra Mucci and Cindy Creteau-Miller in the general election for New Hampshire House of Representatives Belknap 2 on November 8, 2022.

Candidate
%
Votes
Lisa Smart (R)
 
26.5
 
1,649
Image of Matt Coker
Matt Coker (D) Candidate Connection
 
25.4
 
1,581
Sandra Mucci (D)
 
24.8
 
1,546
Cindy Creteau-Miller (R)
 
23.2
 
1,445
 Other/Write-in votes
 
0.1
 
4

Total votes: 6,225
Candidate Connection = 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.

Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for New Hampshire House of Representatives Belknap 2 (2 seats)

Sandra Mucci and Matt Coker advanced from the Democratic primary for New Hampshire House of Representatives Belknap 2 on September 13, 2022.

Candidate
%
Votes
Sandra Mucci
 
54.5
 
362
Image of Matt Coker
Matt Coker Candidate Connection
 
45.2
 
300
 Other/Write-in votes
 
0.3
 
2

Total votes: 664
Candidate Connection = 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 Belknap 2 (2 seats)

Cindy Creteau-Miller and Lisa Smart defeated Jeanne Tofts in the Republican primary for New Hampshire House of Representatives Belknap 2 on September 13, 2022.

Candidate
%
Votes
Cindy Creteau-Miller
 
34.5
 
555
Lisa Smart
 
33.0
 
531
Jeanne Tofts
 
32.5
 
524

Total votes: 1,610
Candidate Connection = 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.

Campaign themes

2024

Ballotpedia survey responses

See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection

Candidate Connection

Matt Coker completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2024. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Coker's responses. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.

Expand all | Collapse all

I'm running because I love my community. I am a father of three daughters, ranging from a toddler to a teenager. When I'm not in Concord, I'm an active airline pilot who has flown all over the world with multiple airlines.

I have three main priorities: keeping our taxes low, cutting red tape, and making government work for the residents of this state while maintaining New Hampshire's unique character.

During my time in the legislature, I voted to reduce your taxes by helping to end the dividends tax, which unfairly taxed the income of middle-class retirees. I sponsored multiple bills to cut government red tape and eliminate unnecessary burdens on our residents, making government work better for our citizens. Additionally, I sponsored several bills to protect our beautiful lakes, particularly focusing on cyanobacteria mitigation and prevention, and to help towns address this issue, thereby protecting local taxpayers from having to solely bear the cost of such blooms.

With my experience and connections in the legislature, I will be able to accomplish even more in my next term.
  • Keeping your taxes low is the number one priority. The first way to achieve this is by keeping government small. Programs tend to slowly get larger, and we must resist that tendency. We must provide all the services we are tasked to provide in an efficient and streamlined way. Lastly, we have to make tough budgeting decisions, and I have proven I'm not afraid to do this. We need to understand what's a want and what's a need, and make our decisions based on that thinking. We must also be careful not to let problems balloon. Sometimes it's cheaper to fix something early with a small investment rather than pushing it off and incurring a larger cost later.
  • Cutting red tape is my second priority. I sponsored two bills with this intention and plan to introduce more next term. My flagship bill was to end vehicle inspections on brand new vehicles. It makes no sense that a brand new car needs an inspection within the first two years after purchase. In this process, I have found other issues with our vehicle inspections that place an undue burden on our citizens. Being on the Transportation Committee, this is my area of focus, but next session I plan to tackle other areas. Another area I see room for improvement is in permitting and certification for skilled workers. We need to efficiently process these two things to get projects built and people to work.
  • Keeping New Hampshire's unique character is my next main priority. I love this state. I moved here from Florida over ten years ago and haven't looked back. In my opinion, we maintain our state's character by keeping local control a central tenet. Each town has its unique character and personality, and the state should support the towns when needed but shouldn't dictate how they should be run. We need to preserve our independent streak. Just because our neighbors do it doesn't mean we need to.
I am very passionate about working on issues that affect young people in our state. Our state is one of the oldest in the country, and so is our legislature. I am committed to making our education system work for parents and ensuring it produces the best outcomes. Additionally, I am focused on clearing red tape so we can build housing to meet the current shortage. Lastly, I want to make sure the business environment in New Hampshire attracts companies, providing good-paying and fulfilling jobs so we can all prosper.
I look up to my grandfather. He served in both Korea and Vietnam and taught me from a young age to have a strong work ethic. He also encouraged me to follow my dreams of becoming a pilot. Politically, I'd say my two role models, or the politicians I look to when making hard choices, are President Lincoln and Winston Churchill. Both men served during turbulent times and were able to unite their people in the face of adversity. They understood the value of working with their rivals and were not afraid to do what was right, regardless of the political winds.
Team of Rivals, which is about the presidency of Abraham Lincoln. I also think Hillbilly Elegy by J.D. Vance provides great insight into many of the issues we face today. Another book which captures many of my thoughts is And There Was Light by Jon Meacham, which is also about President Lincoln.
Obviously, honesty and good character are first and foremost. Following closely is being a good listener because, ultimately, your job is to receive feedback and represent your constituency. A leader also needs to have a strong constitution because you will have to make some hard choices and do so under withering scrutiny. A leader must have the ability to hold up under pressure and make the best choice.
Most importantly, I love Meredith, and I am serving for the good of my community above all else. I'm a good listener. I'm humble enough to admit I don’t have all the answers, and I frequently reach out to the community for feedback and to hear their opinions. I'm endlessly curious, which makes learning about almost everything—and researching policy decisions—a natural fit for me. I'm able to work with just about anyone; I'm an instinctive coalition builder, and in the team sport of politics, that’s helpful. I also have the courage to call things as I see them. If something is wrong, I'll call it out, and I'm not afraid to stand my ground when needed.
There are basic responsibilities, which I'll get into later, but the most important responsibility is to answer the phone. I am my constituents' voice in the State, and if they have an issue, I should listen and help fix it when I can.

Regarding the basic responsibilities of a legislator, we make laws. I should address issues by proposing new laws and, just as importantly, work to eliminate bad laws. I should keep a constant watch on the budget, just as I would my own personal budget, and ensure that the people's money is spent wisely and frugally. We also serve as the people's check on the other branches of government, so we should investigate and intervene in issues when they arise and our involvement is warranted.
I'd like my legacy to be that I put my community above all else.
When Desert Storm broke out, I was four, and my dad was in the Air Force. He didn't deploy, but I remember seeing other people's fathers come back from deployment.
Sweeping airplane hangars when I was thirteen. I did that for three years until I was promoted to fueling airplanes.
Churchill by Andrew Roberts: Winston Churchill's life reads like a fiction novel. As a history nerd, it hits on both World Wars—there's not much more you could ask for. It's super interesting.
Anyone with a toddler knows Ms. Rachel's songs can get stuck in your head for days.
Our relationship with the governor is a partnership. We are equals, and we should work together for the good of the state. However, we must also fulfill our role when the legislature feels the governor is not on the right track by exercising our power under the state constitution to override vetoes and take other necessary actions.
Our state's greatest challenge is how to keep New Hampshire an attractive place for people to raise a family and to retain our young people from leaving the state. We must do this while maintaining the state's character. We need to develop housing in an efficient way that aligns with the unique character of our towns. We also need to rethink education. We've been doing schools the same way for decades, and it's time to adapt our system to a new world and its opportunities. Additionally, we need to attract high-tech businesses that will provide our workers with good-quality jobs well into the future.

If people can afford to live here, have access to a good education, and secure good jobs, they will have hope. The most serious issues in our state—drug use, mental health challenges, and the lack of affordable housing—will become easier to address and will ultimately start to resolve themselves. We need to build a state where people can get a hand up and succeed.
Yes, to a point, experience is valuable. I learned a lot in my first term and will undoubtedly be better at delivering for my town in the next term. It takes a while to get your bearings, but this time I can hit the ground running because two years go by way too fast. I do think there's a point where someone can be in office for too long and become stuck in their ways, but the New Hampshire House typically experiences quite a bit of turnover, so that problem is less pronounced in our state.
Yes, 100%. Politics is a team sport. In a closely divided house, getting a few people from the other side to support your bill can mean the difference between success and failure. Building relationships with other lawmakers fosters trust and respect, which allows you to move things forward when you normally couldn't. It's also noteworthy that 80% of our bills are bipartisan, so the less we fight over things, the more we can accomplish for the people. And that all comes down to relationships.
Yes, we must be able to check the executive branch's use of emergency powers. Obviously, the governor can act more quickly in an emergency than the legislature can, but those emergency powers should be subject to legislative oversight within a short period of time. This is necessary to prevent the executive from overstepping the line and abusing or misusing their authority.
Transportation, Public Works and Labor, Industrial and rehabilitative services.
Government officials should be required to disclose where campaign funds are coming from and must be transparent about conflicts of interest. They should also refrain from voting on bills in which they have a financial interest. Any citizen should be able to see where every cent of taxpayers dollars is spent.

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.

2022

Candidate Connection

Matt Coker completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2022. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Coker's responses. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.

Expand all | Collapse all

I am Matt Coker and I am running to be your New Hampshire State Representative to represent the people of Meredith in Belknap County and in Concord. I am a loving husband to my wonderful wife Chelsea and a devoted father of three. I feel extremely grateful to live and raise my family in the town of Meredith, where the community comes together to discuss, understand, and share common goals during town meetings and many community events. I believe that the spirit of democracy, civility and informed citizen involvement is essential to our town’s character and to our unique state. If elected I will put the needs of Meredith citizens first in the Statehouse.
  • Maintaining New Hampshire’s Advantage of Lower Taxes. I will ensure that the benefit of every dollar raised gives maximum value back to the community. I’m against broad based taxes such as a state income or sales tax. I oppose tax policy and programs that will downshift cost to the local taxpayer.
  • Reducing the cost of Living. As a father of three, I know how expensive life in New Hampshire has become for young families. Politicians in Concord have put special interest groups and political allegiances ahead of their duty to the families they represent. The legislators in Concord need to put aside their political differences and work together on sensible proposals that will make life easier for regular folks just trying to get by regardless of the various political whims of the moment.
  • Reproductive Healthcare. I am pro-choice and the reversal of Roe has made reproductive healthcare a very important state level issue. I believe abortion should remain safe, legal and accessible in New Hampshire. I believe we should ensure a women’s right to make her own medical decisions without government interference by codifying the right in New Hampshire state law.
I am most passionate about fiscal conservatism with a heart. I believe strongly in supporting the county level departments that provide our basic services such as the county nursing home and Sheriff's department. The average age of a New Hampshire legislator is 66 years old. I believe many in the New Hampshire Statehouse have lost sight of their job which is to make life better for the citizens of our state. If elected I will work tirelessly to represent working families and make their lives easier and bring down the cost of living. We need to make New Hampshire an oasis for people to raise their families and I will work with anyone who shares that goal. We can do that by supporting our community schools, creating family friendly policies, and cutting red tape to allow more housing development. I am also dedicated to preserving the unique character of Gunstock Mountain and I will advocate for the citizens of the county to have more control of the mountain's future.
Common sense and the ability and willingness to work with others of differing views to get things done for the people of New Hampshire.
9-11 is the first major historical moment I clearly remember. I watched it unfold while in my high school biology class.
I started sweeping airplane hangars when I was 14. Since then worked my way from that to flying airliners all over the globe.
John Adams by David McCullough. I find John Adams' life very fascinating a simple man from New England who traveled to Europe and played such a pivotal role in our country's founding. I also love Thomas Jefferson: The Art of Power by Jon Meacham. Jefferson was the polar opposite of Adams and I believe by knowing both of them you gain a deep understanding of the the push and pull around our countries foundation.
I cooperative relationship where both branches work with each other to get things done.
Attracting young families to the state, creating affordable housing and increasing mental health services and addiction treatment.
Yes and no. Experience has its place but a new set of eyes is always beneficial.
Yes. Your job is to get things done and politics is a team sport. I will build relationships on both sides of the aisle to work to get things done for the people of New Hampshire.
An independent non-partisan commission that ensures all citizens voices are heard and matter.
They should oversee but I believe the executive branch should have the ability to respond to emergencies without undo interference from the legislative branch. The legislative branch should have the ability to check that power but in a balanced way that does not tie the hands of the Governor.

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.


Matt Coker campaign contribution history
YearOfficeStatusContributionsExpenditures
2024* New Hampshire House of Representatives Belknap 2Won general$7,773 $0
2022New Hampshire House of Representatives Belknap 2Won general$7,566 $0
Grand total$15,339 $0
Sources: OpenSecretsFederal Elections Commission ***This product uses the openFEC API but is not endorsed or certified by the Federal Election Commission (FEC).
* Data from this year may not be complete

Scorecards

See also: State legislative scorecards and State legislative scorecards in New Hampshire

A scorecard evaluates a legislator’s voting record. Its purpose is to inform voters about the legislator’s political positions. Because scorecards have varying purposes and methodologies, each report should be considered on its own merits. For example, an advocacy group’s scorecard may assess a legislator’s voting record on one issue while a state newspaper’s scorecard may evaluate the voting record in its entirety.

Ballotpedia is in the process of developing an encyclopedic list of published scorecards. Some states have a limited number of available scorecards or scorecards produced only by select groups. It is Ballotpedia’s goal to incorporate all available scorecards regardless of ideology or number.

Click here for an overview of legislative scorecards in all 50 states.  To contribute to the list of New Hampshire scorecards, email suggestions to editor@ballotpedia.org.


2024


2023











See also


External links

Footnotes

  1. https://manchesterinklink.com/meredith-state-representative-changes-parties/ Manchester Ink Link, "Meredith state representative changes parties," accessed February 9, 2024]
  2. Information submitted to Ballotpedia through the Candidate Connection survey on August 14, 2022
  3. Matt Croker 2022 campaign website, "My Story," accessed January 22, 2023
  4. Information submitted to Ballotpedia through the Candidate Connection survey on August 12, 2024


Representatives
Belknap 1
Belknap 2
Belknap 3
Belknap 4
Belknap 7
Belknap 8
Carroll 1
Tom Buco (D)
Carroll 2
Carroll 3
Carroll 4
Carroll 5
Carroll 6
Carroll 7
Carroll 8
Cheshire 1
Cheshire 10
Cheshire 11
Cheshire 12
Cheshire 13
Cheshire 14
John Hunt (R)
Cheshire 15
Cheshire 16
Cheshire 17
Cheshire 18
Cheshire 2
Dru Fox (D)
Cheshire 3
Cheshire 4
Cheshire 5
Cheshire 6
Cheshire 7
Cheshire 8
Cheshire 9
Coos 1
Coos 2
Coos 3
Coos 4
Seth King (R)
Coos 5
Coos 6
Coos 7
Grafton 10
Grafton 11
Grafton 13
Grafton 14
Grafton 15
Grafton 16
Grafton 17
Grafton 18
Grafton 2
Grafton 3
Grafton 4
Grafton 6
Grafton 7
Grafton 8
Grafton 9
Hillsborough 1
Hillsborough 10
Bill Ohm (R)
Hillsborough 11
Hillsborough 14
Hillsborough 15
Hillsborough 16
Hillsborough 17
Hillsborough 18
Hillsborough 19
Matt Drew (R)
Hillsborough 20
Hillsborough 21
Hillsborough 22
Hillsborough 23
Hillsborough 24
Hillsborough 25
Hillsborough 26
Hillsborough 27
Hillsborough 28
Keith Erf (R)
Hillsborough 29
Hillsborough 3
Hillsborough 30
Hillsborough 31
Hillsborough 32
Hillsborough 33
Hillsborough 34
Hillsborough 35
Hillsborough 36
Hillsborough 37
Hillsborough 38
Hillsborough 39
Hillsborough 4
Hillsborough 40
Hillsborough 41
Lily Foss (D)
Hillsborough 42
Lisa Post (R)
Hillsborough 43
Hillsborough 44
Hillsborough 45
Hillsborough 5
Hillsborough 6
Hillsborough 7
Hillsborough 8
Hillsborough 9
Merrimack 1
Merrimack 10
Merrimack 11
Merrimack 12
Merrimack 13
Merrimack 14
Merrimack 15
Merrimack 16
Merrimack 17
Merrimack 18
Merrimack 19
Merrimack 2
Merrimack 20
Merrimack 21
Merrimack 22
Merrimack 23
Merrimack 24
Merrimack 25
Merrimack 26
Alvin See (R)
Merrimack 27
Merrimack 28
Merrimack 29
Merrimack 3
Merrimack 30
Merrimack 4
Merrimack 5
Merrimack 6
Merrimack 7
Merrimack 8
Merrimack 9
Rockingham 1
Rockingham 10
Rockingham 11
Rockingham 12
Zoe Manos (D)
Rockingham 14
Pam Brown (R)
Rockingham 15
Rockingham 18
Rockingham 19
Rockingham 2
Rockingham 20
Rockingham 21
Rockingham 22
Rockingham 23
Rockingham 24
Rockingham 26
Rockingham 27
Rockingham 28
Rockingham 29
Rockingham 3
Mary Ford (R)
Rockingham 30
Rockingham 31
Terry Roy (R)
Rockingham 32
Rockingham 33
Rockingham 34
Rockingham 35
Rockingham 36
Rockingham 37
Rockingham 38
Rockingham 39
Rockingham 4
Rockingham 40
Rockingham 5
Rockingham 6
Rockingham 7
Rockingham 8
Rockingham 9
Strafford 1
Strafford 11
Strafford 13
Strafford 14
Strafford 15
Strafford 16
Strafford 17
Strafford 18
Strafford 19
Strafford 20
Strafford 21
Luz Bay (D)
Strafford 3
Strafford 4
Strafford 5
Strafford 6
Strafford 7
Strafford 8
Strafford 9
Sullivan 1
Sullivan 2
Sullivan 3
Sullivan 4
Judy Aron (R)
Sullivan 5
Sullivan 6
Sullivan 7
Sullivan 8
Republican Party (219)
Democratic Party (177)
Independent (1)