2026 Candidate for
New Hampshire State Representative
Hillsborough 35 District (Hollis)
Ben Ming
NH State Rep. (2022-2024)
Committee Assignments:
Judiciary, Fish & Game
Prime-Sponsored Bills:
HB 240 (2023) | Chaptered Law 23
HB 1220 (2024) | Chaptered Law 229
Hollis Planning Board (2016-Present)
January 9, 2026
Many people in our state have had a heightened sense of urgency in their civic involvement ever since the previous election, and I have shared that same sentiment. I believe that this is a time in history where we must act boldly when we know the intentions of our heart, which is why I'm announcing my campaign for New Hampshire State Representative in 2026. Campaign announcements for State Rep. races in New Hampshire aren't typically made this early, but these are not typical times. While national politics have created an urgeny to act, it is the politics and government of New Hampshire that I care most about and what I've been considering for the past year.
The time between Election Day 2024 and now has also been filled with a lot of self-reflection, mostly related to the personal and financial constraints of campaigning and serving as a state legislator. These challenges aren't much of a secret and I believe one of the things that our legislature continues to lack is representatives who can see the entire landscape of living in New Hampshire. Not nearly enough legislators are simultaneously of working age, raising the next generation of Granite Staters, and also dealing with very real concerns for their older family members, who are trying to find a way to live in the state where they've laid down their roots. It's affecting what the legislature prioritizes, which has made it economically challenging to live here.
While I hope to return to the seat to which I was first elected in 2022, my greatest wish is to see our state move past a suffocating reliance on property taxes, to one that makes it possible for families to stay. Leaving a multi-generational legacy is a dream I have for my family and for anyone in New Hampshire who wishes the same for theirs. The party in power has had many unrestricted chances to lead New Hampshire to this place, and they have failed. It's time for change.
Platform
New Hampshire's problems in the state government continue to be unresolved.
The issues I talked to voters the most about when I was a State Rep. candidate in 2022 are just as relevant now as they were then, and it is alarming how little the State government has done to help:
- Reduce high and rising property taxes
- Maintain the strength of our top-ranked schools
- Keep Hollis the rural community people love
Our property taxes have increased to the point where they are second mortgages. Our schools are making tough staffing decisions while faced with the rising costs that most NH employers are also dealing with. Our longtime-residents have voiced their concerns about the increasing challenges with staying in their homes.
Ben's Platform:
Focused on what matters to Hollis
- Lower Property Taxes - prioritize school funding at the state level, so local governments can lower property taxes without an income tax.
- Return Local Control to Towns - give our community independence, and allow us to make our own decisions on spending, building, and schools.
- Maintain Our Way of Life in Hollis - support generationally-friendly policies like housing, childcare, and the environment, that preserve rural character, make it possible for our seniors to stay, and allow the State's workforce to grow.
In addition to these top issues, the one question I hear most from voters is whether I support a sales or income tax. Voters of every political affiliation have told me that they don't want one, and my wife and I decided in part to raise our family here in New Hampshire because there's no income tax. Our state government has a spending problem that manifests itself in its remarkable ineffectiveness in prioritizing the expenses that would benefit us all, and especially while that issue remains, I cannot support a tax that goes directly against the will of the people.
The Impossibility of Campaigning, Legislating, and Parenting
I’ve run for public office three times over the past five years. Each time, I was asked to run by people in #NHPolitics who I respect and admire. These are people I’ve had the great fortune to work with towards the shared goal of making our state a better place for everyone to live in. I always told them “yes” because there’s a vanishingly small number of people in our state during any given year that have the personal and professional stability to give their lives up for the good of the people.
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A Sudden Case of Open Enrollment
During cold and flu season, there are always signs that the whole family is going to get the same bug. It starts off with one of the kids having a dry cough or runny nose and, before you know it, the entire family is down for the count. Open enrollment has been similarly brewing as an issue in the educational funding landscape of New Hampshire for the past year, but it is suddenly on the verge of infecting our entire state thanks to the events of one day in the Senate this past week.
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Born into Change
A funny thing has started happening to me recently. An old picture of my kids popped up on my phone which, by itself, is nothing notable. But now, when my phone delivers delightful photo memories from years past, they have become true reminders of things that are no longer at the front of my mind. They’re the things that I don’t think about constantly, but still vividly remember. They’re special ones that bring back not only the memory of when that picture was taken, but also how I felt. They’re nostalgic, and it’s hard to believe that I’ve already reached this point in parenthood.
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Follow
Find me @BenMingNH
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Contact
info@benmingnh.com
Mailing Address:
Ben Ming for New Hampshire
P.O. Box 962
Hollis, NH 03049