Laconia’s 2026 Candidates

State House District 5 — VOTE FOR ALL FOUR!
Laconia Wards 1, 3, 4, 5, 6 (click here for Ward 2)

I am Denise Riley, candidate for State Representative to serve Laconia’s District 5. I was born and raised in Manchester, attended public schools, and earned a degree in Criminal Justice from St. Anselm College. For over 30 years I have been serving the public as a defense investigator protecting all citizens’ constitutional rights. I have decades of experience listening carefully to people and that is the most important skill of a state rep.

I have lived and worked in Laconia for over 5 years, and it is my home. Through my work and personal experience, I understand the struggles of rising housing costs and property taxes. I will focus on lowering costs instead of creating tax structures that benefit the ultra-wealthy at our expense. I have been paying attention to the bills our current reps have voted on, and I feel that I can do better for the people of Laconia. 

Priorities: the environment, moderate income housing, and the return of the restorative justice program.

My family moved to Laconia when I was 3 and I attended Laconia schools. After college I lived in Cambridge. I was politically active supporting candidates and advocating for affordable housing measures that we passed at the citywide level.

My love of sports led me to start a girls' soccer program in the inner city of Boston, and I also helped facilitate the start of the Eastern Massachusetts Women's Soccer League. These both dramatically increased participation in girls’ and women’s sports. For this work I was inducted into the Massachusetts and New England Soccer Halls of Fame, and received the Governor's Award.

Since I moved home almost ten years ago, I have volunteered at the Loon Center, Hands Across the Table, Committee to Save St. Joseph Church, numerous food drives, my condominium association board, the restoration of Primrose Cemetery, Laconia Heritage Committee, and Lakes Region Scholarship Board. I also take care of the Veterans' Gardens at Bayside and Union Cemeteries.

I know that my priorities are not easily solved, and I look forward to working with anyone on these issues.

Coming soon!

I'm asking for your support as we return the Statehouse in Concord to a more rational, center-driven agenda that protects our public schools, restores our healthcare options and preserves our environment, while keeping the cost of government down and not driving our property taxes up.

Soaring property taxes, cuts to Medicaid, financially failing public schools and interference in otherwise profitable county owned corporations. The citizens of New Hampshire deserve better, more responsible representation.

You deserve it, your children deserve it and your wallet deserves it.

Bob has lived in Gilford for 30 years and has been a resident of Belknap County for 50+ years. He currently serves on the Gilford School Board where he is on the Facilities Committee and the Budget Committee. Education is one key issue for his campaign. “We need to properly fund our public schools and continue to keep NH in the top 10 states for education.” Bob will also work towards creating more affordable housing, protect women’s right to choose, help to address climate change, and protect the county nursing home and Gunstock.

Bob has worked as a hospitality manager, a builder, and a ski instructor at Gunstock. “I feel that I have been extremely fortunate to have been able to live and raise a family in such a beautiful part of NH,” Bob says. “I am running for State Representative so that future generations can enjoy all that Belknap County and New Hampshire has to offer.”

I have lived in Belknap County for over 40 years and have seen our capacity to grow, face struggle, and overcome adversity as a community.

I was an accountant until I changed paths so I could try to improve the lives of others through forensic psychology. Right now, our way of life is in jeopardy and we need to act if we are going to keep local control, secure our personal freedoms, and preserve our beloved Lakes Region.

We all share similar concerns like safety, stability, and family. So, as your state representative, I will represent all Gilford, Gilmanton, and Laconia voters, not one party or cause.

We must work together to ensure local independence and preserve valuable resources like Gunstock and Winnipesaukee. Our businesses depend on it, our children depend on it, and so will those generations that follow.

Kurt Webber is a West Point graduate and retired Army officer with over 23 years of service in Infantry and Special Forces units, and 2 tours teaching at West Point. After 9/11, just a few months after retiring, Kurt volunteered to go back on active duty and served in Iraq in 2005 advising the Iraqi Army. When not on active duty, Kurt was a professor at Lakes Region Community College and New Hampshire Technical Institute from 2001 to 2017.

Kurt has committed his life to public service both in and out of uniform. He founded the Patriot Resilient Leader Institute, which runs the Camp Resilience program that has hosted over 150 therapeutic retreats for military, veterans, first responders, and their loved ones since 2014 with over 1400 participants to date. He has also served in Scouting, Lakes Region Veterans Coalition, the Gilford School Board, coaching the Gilford High School football team, Gunstock Ski Patrol, and as NH State Coordinator for West Point Admissions.

"I am a moderate who believes in fiscal responsibility and that the most important things for any member of any legislature are integrity and a willingness to compromise," Kurt says. "Without compromise, democracy doesn't work. I understand, and in many cases sympathize with, the valid concerns of people at both ends of the political spectrum but don't agree with the more extreme positions on either side."

I am running for the New Hampshire Executive Council to serve the people of District 1, a region that stretches across 91 municipalities from Dover and Durham in the south to Pittsburg at our northern border. Our communities deserve a leader who brings independence, diligence, and a deep commitment to transparency.

The Executive Council is the most powerful oversight body in New Hampshire government. It approves or denies state and federal contracts over $10,000, confirms judicial and executive appointments, oversees the expenditure of state and federal funds, helps shape our transportation infrastructure, and reviews pardon requests. 

As a three‑time cancer survivor, marathoner, and state representative, I am familiar with overcoming long odds as well as fighting for my community. I’m running because the people of District 1 deserve a voice in the Council who understands resilience, and who will work tirelessly to ensure fairness, accountability, and opportunity for every resident.

On the Council, my priorities will be:

• Ensuring quality public education for every child
• Protecting every woman's right to choose
• Expanding access to affordable health care
• Advancing economic justice so that working families can thrive in every corner of our state.

These issues determine whether our neighbors can see a doctor, whether our schools are strong, and whether opportunity is truly available to all.