BOB McLEAN
District 6 - Gilford, Gilmanton, Ward 2 Laconia
Mr. McLean is a candidate for State Rep.
RECOMMENDED
Unlike some of his competitors, Mr. McLean has spent several years serving his community on the school board and town budget committee. His positions on county issues Citizens for Belknap considers reasonable and responsible. As such, we fully recommend his candidacy.
Mr. McLean is running for the second time for State Representative in District 6, representing Gilford, Gilmanton and Laconia Ward 2. In his Laconia Daily Sun profile he said he has lived in New Hampshire since he was 12, and has lived in Gilford since 1994. After a career as a manager and in food service, then as a facilities manager, Mr. McLean has worked for some years with his brother as a home builder in the region.
He's currently serving in his second term for the Gilford School Board, the Town of Gilford's budget committee, and has been a ski instructor at Gunstock for over a decade.
He mentioned in his LDS profile that he believes in transparency and making himself available to constituents who have questions. True to his word, during this campaign he has complete his Citizens for Belknap Primary and General questionnaires (below) , his Citizens Count survey of state issues, and participated in the pre-primary candidate forum in Gilford.
Mr. McLean has been an outspoken protector of Gunstock and the county nursing home, and hopes to help the county commission maximize the nursing home's capacity. As a school board member, he says in his campaign website that he's opposed to Education Freedom Accounts because it siphons off money from public schools, and sends it to religious schools, which had been prohibited in the NH constitution for 200 years before a recent U.S. Supreme Court decision.
He also expresses concern for climate change and in his Laconia Daily Sun profile, points to the Gilford School District's project to switch to all-LED lighting and other efficiency investments, yielding $300,000 in savings. He thinks the state could invest in such energy saving and consider alternative energy installations like solar, saving the state money and helping the environment.
In both his questionnaires and his interview, he points to the current legislature's cutting of the Interest & Dividends, Rooms & Meals, and business taxes as contributing to higher property taxes and cost of living for District 6 families. He writes:
"By reducing these taxes, the state has shifted the tax burden to property owners again. The room and meals tax is a tax that is paid in a large part by people who visit our state. This helps lower resident taxes."
RECOMMENDED
Unlike some of his competitors, Mr. McLean has spent several years serving his community on the school board and town budget committee. His positions on county issues Citizens for Belknap considers reasonable and responsible. As such, we fully recommend his candidacy.
2026 General Election Questionnaire
1. Give three examples of waste you would cut in our NH state or county government.
1. The first thing that I would do is dismantle the voucher program. This program does nothing but help wealthier families pay for private schools that their children are already attending. We also pay millions to a private company to manage the program which launders the money so it can be used for religious schools.
2. The second thing we could do is update our sources of energy production. This could be done by moving away from natural gas and towards renewable energy. State buildings could be updated with more efficient lighting and heating systems. Our school district invested 90 thousand dollars to upgrade to LED lighting. The next year we cut energy costs by 300 thousand dollars.
3.The state is wasting money by cutting taxes for wealthy people and reducing taxes on big corporations which the state needs to provide funding for much needed programs.
2. Do you believe New Hampshire needs to explore additional sources of state revenue, or do you believe the state’s current approach to taxation and revenue is working? Please explain.
The tax cuts the state has made do not benefit the majority of people in our state. I do not propose any news taxes but we need to reinstate the ones that have been decreased. We could use state land to produce energy that would increase revenue and lower costs. We could legalize marijuana as a source of revenue.
3. Do you support having an AI data center located in Belknap County? Explain.
I do not support AI data centers anywhere in our state. We already have the highest energy costs in the country and these centers would make it worse. Our water quality and availability would also become an issue.
4. Because Laconia hosts more city and county services for the homeless, it also shoulders more of the impact and financial burden. Would you support a county-wide plan to offset those problems and costs? Why or why not?
The services being provided to people suffering from addiction and homeless are not part of the state government. So we can't make taxpayers support private non profits. However the state should be doing everything they can to fund and support these services. This is state wide problem that shows itself in cities where there are services for these people.
5. Should Belknap County towns heavily impacted by out-of-state visitors receive a higher share of Rooms & Meal tax revenue?
I don't think it's a good idea to have different tax rates around the state. I do think the room and meals tax should be raised back to where it was which will benefit our local businesses.
6. By 2030, what would be your vision for education, and its method of funding?
I think the future of education in our state is under attack by the liberty alliance in the state house whose goal is to privatize education. My plan would be for the state to pay the amount of $7300 per student.
Which is the amount ordered by the court as an adequate education. We need to change course and make our schools the pride of each community and all schools should have programs to keep students engaged in learning and supporting their by community.
2026 Primary Questionnaire
Bob McLean- Candidate for Belknap County District 6 State Representative
1. How long have you lived in Belknap County? If you moved to the county, why did you choose to do so? If you have always lived in Belknap County, why have you stayed? If you’ve been a resident for one year or less, what prompted you to run so soon?
I moved to Belknap County in 1970 with my family. I graduated from Inter-lakes
high school. I moved to Boston in my twenties and realized that the rat race and urban
living was not for me. I bought a home in Gilford in 1994 and raised my family here. I
enjoy boating, skiing, fishing and so many other activities that our county has to offer.
2. Why are you running, and what is the most important legislative issue you hope to tackle the next legislative term?
I am running again for State Rep. because our state is continually passing legislation that makes it harder and more expensive to educate our children, pay our property taxes, find affordable housing and good paying jobs.
My priorities would be to roll back tax cuts for the wealthy and large corporations. I would also roll
back the many laws that are aimed at destroying public education. Then I would like to
work on ways to battle climate change, create affordable housing and implement
renewable sources of energy.
3. What do you see are the biggest needs or issues in Belknap County, and what would you do to fill that need?
The biggest issues for Belknap County are affordable housing, high property taxes and the negative effects of climate change. However, our county delegation continues to cut funding for programs that directly address these issues.
4. What distinguishes you from the other candidates running in your district?
I have experience running for office and feel that I am well informed on the issues we are experiencing. I am also a member of the Gilford school board and have had to deal with all the negative
educational changes that have been put in place.
5. A recent independent report found deficiencies in the current Belknap County jail. Would you support construction of a building that meets modern standards? Or should the existing jail be renovated?
I would be in favor of doing what is in the best interest of the residents of Belknap
County. We just renovated the locker room at GHS with excellent results and I think this
could be the most affordable solution.
6. Do you agree that traditional public schools are essential to attracting business and retaining employees in Belknap county? Should our students’ education be funded at ‘adequate education’ levels as defined by the NH Supreme Court’s in the ConVal decision? Why or why not?
Our property values are directly affected by the quality of the public education
in the community. The statewide property tax system is not working. The current state
government continues to look for ways to avoid paying the court ordered adequacy
amount per student, yet they gladly give money to people who choose alternative
education.
7. The Belknap County Nursing Home continues to operate under capacity, yet it has a waiting list of Belknap clients. What will you do as a member of the Delegation, to assist the County Commission to maximize our nursing care facility?
We need to properly fund the county nursing so employees can get a fair wage and have access to benefits.
8. The county nursing home and the Belknap Mountain Recreation Area, including Gunstock Mountain Resort, are revenue streams owned by Belknap County. As a County Delegation member, do you support leasing out the property to a private company, or selling those operations?
I do not support leasing or selling our county institutions. I know from our experience a few years ago with Gunstock that the vast majority of residents want to keep Gunstock in possession of the county.
9. Opioids and other drugs continue to be a problem in our communities. What are your ideas to reduce the impact of these drugs in our community? What resources are you willing to commit?
The opioid problem and the housing problem are connected. I have spoken to people in halfway houses in Laconia and although this works for a few, these locations are too close to where there is access to drugs. We need to support these counseling programs and continue to look for ways to help
people recover. I would support tougher penalties for those profiting from the sale of
addictive drugs.
10. Belknap County’s delegation of state representatives has the poorest rate of attendance in the state at 78% for the 2024-25 legislative session. It’s so bad that the 2nd lowest, Strafford County, is 89%. Do you commit to attending at least 80% of committee meetings, and 90% or more of Session vote days?
I will commit to the attendance proposal.
11. The Belknap County Sheriff’s Department has entered into an agreement with U.S Immigration & Customs Enforcement 287(g) program agreement. Do you support this, and why?
I do not support our involvement with ICE. You don’t get immigration reform by killing people and threatening people. There are so many other ways of dealing with this issue.
Ignore - Duplicate Question
12. The county nursing home and the Belknap Mountain Recreation Area, including Gunstock Mountain Resort, are revenue streams owned by Belknap County. As a County Delegation member, do you support leasing out the property/operations to a private company, or selling the property/operations?
13. Affordable housing continues to be a problem, causing challenges for our county economy, including limiting the worker pool, attracting business, and attracting younger families. If elected, what will you do to increase the stock of affordable housing?
I would support new construction of rent control housing and renovation of
existing sites for housing.
14. Without clean lakes and rivers, the Belknap County tourism economy would be in jeopardy. Should the county financially support pollution control and water quality monitoring programs? Why or why not?
Our lakes and mountains are crucial to the economy of Belknap County. Yes, I
would financially support these efforts. I would also support efforts to reduce climate
change. Global warming is creating a lot more drastic weather conditions which in turns
washes more pollutants into our waterways because they are not being filtered naturally
through our streams and wetlands.
15. Do you agree that the tax reduction for State revenue streams (Business Enterprise Tax, Rooms & Meals, Income & Dividends Tax, et. al), resulted in downshifted costs to Belknap county and local schools, and increased local property taxes? Why or why not?
By reducing these taxes, the state has shifted the tax burden to
property owners again. The room and meals tax is a tax that is paid in a large part by
people who visit our state. This helps lower resident taxes.
16. Would you favor reforming the Delegation’s meeting format? Should the Delegation conduct monthly meetings? Would you increase public input opportunities? Continue with Roberts’ Rules?
I have been to a few delegation meetings, and I was not impressed with the format or the organization. I would be in favor of standard meeting rules.
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