Paul William Hodes (born March 21, 1951) is an American lawyer, musician, and former

U.S. representative The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Article One of th ...

for , serving from 2007 to 2011. He is a member of the Democratic Party, and was New Hampshire's first Jewish representative. Hodes was an unsuccessful candidate for the Senate seat being vacated by

Judd Gregg Judd Alan Gregg (born February 14, 1947) is an American politician and attorney who served as the 76th governor of New Hampshire from 1989 to 1993 and a United States senator from New Hampshire from 1993 to 2011 where he was Chairman of the Heal ...

in 2010, losing to former New Hampshire Attorney General Kelly Ayotte. He was succeeded in the House of Representatives by

Charles Bass Charles Foster Bass (born January 8, 1952) is an American politician and member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party who served as a member of the United States House of Representatives for from 1995 to 2007 and 2011 to 201 ...

. After leaving Congress, Hodes was named as a board member of the Public Advisory Board of the New Hampshire Institute of Politics at

Saint Anselm College Saint Anselm College is a private Benedictine liberal arts college in Goffstown, New Hampshire, United States. Founded in 1889, it is named after Saint Anselm of Canterbury. As of 2024, the college's enrollment was 2,094 students. History ...

. Hodes served on the boards of ADL, New England and the NJDC (National Jewish Democratic Council). In 2012, Hodes was nominated by President

Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II (born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who was the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, he was the first African American president in American history. O ...

and confirmed by the US Senate to a position on the National Council on the Arts. He has subsequently worked as a green energy consultant with Shanti Energy, LLC and became Of Counsel at the law firm of Shaheen & Gordon, P.A. He also hosts radio programs on WKXL.

Early life, education and career

Hodes was born in New York City in 1951, the son of Florence R. (née Rosenberg) and Robert Bernard Hodes. His ancestors were Jewish immigrants from Russia, Poland, and Austria. Hodes graduated from The Collegiate School in 1968 and from

Dartmouth College Dartmouth College ( ) is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Hanover, New Hampshire, United States. Established in 1769 by Eleazar Wheelock, Dartmouth is one of the nine colonial colleges chartered before the America ...

in 1972. At Dartmouth, Hodes majored in French and Theater. In the fall of 1971, Hodes spent a semester studying theater at the National Theater Institute at the Eugene O'Neill Theater Center in Waterford, CT. In 1978, Hodes graduated from

Boston College Law School Boston College Law School (BC Law) is the law school of Boston College, a private Jesuit research university in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts. It is situated on a campus in Newton, Massachusetts, about from the university's main campus in Chestn ...

Arts and entertainment career

Hodes began playing guitar at age 15. Throughout his adult life, he has been both a performer and active member of the arts and entertainment communities. After graduating from Dartmouth College, Hodes spent three years acting, writing, and working on radio shows. While in law school, he acted in the Boston Arts Group . In the 1990s, Hodes was instrumental in the creation of the

Capitol Center for the Arts The Capitol Center for the Arts is an entertainment venue in Concord, New Hampshire, Concord, New Hampshire, United States, which features a 1,304-seat theatre designed with an Egyptian motif. The center opened in its current form in 1995 after ...

in Concord, and previously served on the New Hampshire State Council on the Arts. In 2012, President Obama appointed Hodes to the National Council for the Arts which advises the chair of the National Endowment for the Arts. In addition to re-invigorating his performing career, Hodes now manages musical acts including Hawk & Dove, Black Cosmic and Larksong trio through Big Round Music, LLC. Hodes's wife Peggo is a

children's music Children's music or kids' music is music composed and performed for children. In European-influenced contexts this means music, usually songs, written specifically for a juvenile audience. The composers are usually adults. Children's music has hi ...

ian with whom Hodes has recorded and performed as "Paul & Peggo." The couple won the 1996 Parent's Choice Honors Award for their album "Patchwork Quilt" and performed at the White House.

Law career

Hodes worked as an attorney with the New Hampshire Department of Justice from 1978 until 1980. He was an Assistant Attorney General from 1980 until 1982, when he left to serve as a special prosecutor. From 1983 until 1996 he was in private practice. He is now of Counsel to the firm of Shaheen & Gordon, P.A. in Concord, New Hampshire.

U.S. House of Representatives

Committee assignments

* Committee on Financial Services ** Subcommittee on Capital Markets, Insurance, and Government Sponsored Enterprises ** Subcommittee on Financial Institutions and Consumer Credit *

Committee on Oversight and Government Reform The Committee on Oversight and Government Reform is the main investigative United States congressional committee, committee of the United States House of Representatives. The committee's broad jurisdiction and legislative authority make it one o ...

** Subcommittee on Government Management, Organization, and Procurement ** Subcommittee on National Security and Foreign Affairs

Other membership and leadership positions

* American-Canadian Inter-Parliamentary Working Group * President of the freshman class of 2006 * Board Member, Capitol Center for the Arts, 1990–1996, 2002–present * Board Member, New Hampshire State Council on the Arts, 1998–present * Board Member, New Hampshire Children's Alliance, 1998–2000 * Board Chair, Capitol Center for the Arts, 1990–1996

Political positions

In September 2008, Hodes voted against the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008, also known as "the financial bailout bill", which enacted the

Troubled Asset Relief Program The Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP) is a program of the United States government to purchase toxic assets and equity from financial institutions to strengthen its financial sector that was passed by Congress and signed into law by U.S. Presi ...

("TARP"). He voted for the

American Clean Energy and Security Act The American Clean Energy and Security Act of 2009 (ACES) was an energy bill in the 111th United States Congress () that would have established a variant of an emissions trading plan similar to the European Union Emission Trading Scheme. The bil ...

(commonly referred to as "cap and trade"), as well as the

Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act A patient is any recipient of health care services that are performed by healthcare professionals. The patient is most often ill or injured and in need of treatment by a physician, nurse, optometrist, dentist, veterinarian, or other health ...

. Hodes was one of the first Democrats to demand that Representative

Charlie Rangel Charles Bernard Rangel ( ; June 11, 1930 – May 26, 2025) was an American politician who served as United States House of Representatives, U.S. representative for districts in New York City for 46 years. A member of the Democratic Party (Unite ...

surrender his Ways and Means chairmanship in the wake of the Ethics Committee finding that he violated House rules.

Political campaigns

2004 U.S. House campaign

Hodes ran unsuccessfully as a Democrat for

United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Artic ...

in 2004 against incumbent

New Hampshire's 2nd congressional district New Hampshire's 2nd congressional district covers the western, northern, and some southern parts of New Hampshire. It includes the state's second-largest city, Nashua, New Hampshire, Nashua, as well as the state capital, Concord, New Hampshire, C ...

2006 U.S. House campaign

In a rematch held on November 7, 2006, Hodes defeated Bass 53% to 46%.

2008 U.S. House campaign

In 2008, Hodes was re-elected winning with approximately 56% of the vote. Hodes endorsed

in the 2008 New Hampshire Democratic presidential primary.

2010 U.S. Senate campaign

Hodes was chosen as the Democratic nominee for the

United States Senate The United States Senate is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the upper house, with the United States House of Representatives, U.S. House of Representatives being the lower house. Together, the Senate and ...

seat held by outgoing Republican senator

, who did not seek re-election. Hodes was defeated by Republican nominee Kelly Ayotte, the former New Hampshire Attorney General. by a vote of 273,218 (60%) to 167,545 (37%).

2020 New Hampshire Senate campaign

Hodes ran as a Democrat for the New Hampshire Senate from the 15th district, but lost in the primary to Becky Whitley.

Post-electoral career

On February 16, 2019, Hodes joined the

presidential campaign A political campaign is an organized effort which seeks to influence the decision making progress within a specific group. In democracies, political campaigns often refer to electoral campaigns, by which representatives are chosen or referen ...

of Democratic candidate

Marianne Williamson Marianne Deborah Williamson (born July 8, 1952) is an American author, speaker, and political activist. She began her professional career as a spiritual leader of the Church of Today, a Unity Church in Warren, Michigan. Williamson has written s ...

as a senior campaign advisor and New Hampshire state director.

Electoral history

!Year !Office !Election ! !Subject !Party !Votes !% ! !Opponent !Party !Votes !% ! !Opponent !Party !Votes !% , - , 2004 , Congress, District 2 , General , , , , Paul Hodes , , Democratic , , 125,280 , , 38.17 , , , ,

, , Republican , , 191,188 , , 58.25 , , , , Richard Kahn , ,

Libertarian Libertarianism (from ; or from ) is a political philosophy that holds freedom, personal sovereignty, and liberty as primary values. Many libertarians believe that the concept of freedom is in accord with the Non-Aggression Principle, according ...

, , 11,311 , , 3.45 , - , 2006 , Congress, District 2 , General , , , , Paul Hodes , , Democratic , , 108,634 , , 52.71 , , , ,

, , Republican , , 94,012 , , 45.61 , , , , Ken Blevens , ,

, , 3,305 , , 1.60 , - , 2008 , Congress, District 2 , General , , , , Paul Hodes , , Democratic , , 188,332 , , 56.4 , , , , Jennifer Horn , , Republican , , 138,223 , , 41.4 , , , , Chester LaPointe , ,

, , 7,121 , , 2.1 , - , 2010 ,

U.S. Senate The United States Senate is a chamber of the bicameral United States Congress; it is the upper house, with the U.S. House of Representatives being the lower house. Together, the Senate and House have the authority under Article One of the ...

, General , , , , Paul Hodes , , Democratic , , 166,538 , , 36.7 , , , , Kelly Ayotte , , Republican , , 272,703 , , 60.1 , , , , Chris Booth , ,

Independent Independent or Independents may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups * Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in Pennsylvania, United States * Independentes (English: Independents), a Portuguese artist ...

, , 9,285 , , 2.1

Personal life

Hodes and his wife Peggo live in

Concord, New Hampshire Concord () is the capital city of the U.S. state of New Hampshire and the county seat, seat of Merrimack County, New Hampshire, Merrimack County. As of the 2020 United States census the population was 43,976, making it the List of municipalities ...

. They have two children, Max and Ariana.

References

External links

* ''official campaign site'' *
Oral history interview
through th

* , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Hodes, Paul 1951 births 20th-century American lawyers 21st-century American Jews 21st-century American lawyers 21st-century New Hampshire politicians American children's musicians American political consultants American people of Austrian-Jewish descent American people of Polish-Jewish descent American people of Russian-Jewish descent Boston College Law School alumni Candidates in the 2010 United States elections Candidates in the 2020 United States elections Dartmouth College alumni Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from New Hampshire Jewish members of the United States House of Representatives Lawyers from New York City Living people Musicians from New Hampshire Musicians from New York City New Hampshire lawyers People associated with the 2020 United States presidential election Politicians from Concord, New Hampshire Politicians from New York City 21st-century members of the United States House of Representatives