Brandon Phinney

Brandon Phinney (born April 27, 1988) is an American politician and former member of the New Hampshire House of Representatives, representing Strafford County's 24th district.

Brandon Phinney
Phinney at a press conference announcing his change in party affiliation
Member of the New Hampshire House of Representatives
from the Strafford 24 district
In office
January 2, 2017 – January 2, 2019
Personal details
Born (1988-04-27) April 27, 1988
Haverhill, Massachusetts, U.S.
NationalityAmerican
Political partyLibertarian (2017–present)
Other political
affiliations		Republican (2016–2017)
ResidenceRochester, New Hampshire, U.S.
Alma materGreat Bay Community College
Southern New Hampshire University
OccupationSoldier
CommitteesState-Federal Relations and Veterans Affairs

Career

Phinney earned his associate degree from Great Bay Community College and his bachelor's degree from Southern New Hampshire University.[1] In 2016, he was elected to the New Hampshire House of Representatives as a Republican, beating his Democratic opponent by just 116 votes. There, he became notable in atheist circles as the only openly atheist Republican legislator in the United States.[2] On June 27, 2017 he announced in a press conference that he had changed his party affiliation to Libertarian.[3] At 30, Phinney is among the youngest members of the New Hampshire General Court, but is the oldest member of the Libertarian caucus; his fellow Libertarians Caleb Q. Dyer and Joseph Stallcop are both 22.

Phinney was defeated for re-election in a three-way race, finishing in third place with 10% of the total vote. He was succeeded by Republican Mona Perreault. Following his defeat, he announced he would run for Rochester City Council in 2019.[4]

Electoral history

2016
New Hampshire House of Representatives, District Strafford 24 General Election, 2016[5]
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Brandon Phinney 2,323 51.28
Democratic Karen Stokes 2,207 48.72
Total votes 4,530 100.0

2018
New Hampshire House of Representatives, District Strafford 24 General Election, 2018[6]
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Mona Perreault 1,720 47.19
Democratic Jeremiah Minihan 1,548 42.47
Libertarian Brandon Phinney (incumbent) 377 10.34
Total votes 3,645 100.0

See also

References
  1. "Brandon Phinney's Biography". Vote Smart. Retrieved July 21, 2017.
  2. Mehta, Hermant (June 27, 2017). "The Country's Only Openly Atheist Republican Legislator Just Left the Party". Retrieved June 30, 2017.
  3. Doherty, Brian (June 29, 2017). "New Hampshire Now Has Third Sitting Libertarian Party Legislator". Reason. Retrieved June 30, 2017.
  4. "Brandon Phinney for Rochester City Council". Facebook. Retrieved 26 January 2019.
  5. "New Hampshire 24th District State House Results: Brandon Phinney Wins". December 13, 2016. Retrieved June 30, 2017.
  6. "NH Election Results". Retrieved November 16, 2018.
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