Susan McLane (née Neidlinger) (September 28, 1929 – February 13, 2005) was an American politician.

Early life and education

Born in

Boston, Massachusetts Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

, McLane graduated from Hanover High School in

Hanover, New Hampshire Hanover is a New England town, town located along the Connecticut River in Grafton County, New Hampshire, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, its population was 11,870. The town is home to the Ivy League university ...

in 1947. She then attended to

Mount Holyoke College Mount Holyoke College is a Private college, private Women's colleges in the United States, women's Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in South Hadley, Massachusetts, United States. It is the oldest member of the h ...

. In 1981, McLane returned to school and studied at the

John F. Kennedy School of Government The John F. Kennedy School of Government, commonly referred to as Harvard Kennedy School (HKS), is the school of public policy of Harvard University, a private university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Harvard Kennedy School offers master's de ...

Career

From 1969 to 1981, McLane served in the

New Hampshire House of Representatives The New Hampshire House of Representatives is the lower house in the New Hampshire General Court, the bicameral State legislature (United States), legislature of the state of New Hampshire. The House of Representatives consists of 400 members com ...

. In 1980, McLane unsuccessfully ran for

United States Congress The United States Congress is the legislature, legislative branch of the federal government of the United States. It is a Bicameralism, bicameral legislature, including a Lower house, lower body, the United States House of Representatives, ...

, competing in the Republican primary against

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 ...

and

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 ...

. Gregg eventually won the election, and Bass was elected to congress in 1995. In 2010, Bass was defeated by McLane's daughter,

Ann Anne, alternatively spelled Ann, is a form of the Latin female name Anna. This in turn is a representation of the Hebrew Hannah, which means 'favour' or 'grace'. Related names include Annie and Ana. Anne is sometimes used as a male name in ...

. From 1981 to 1995, McLane served in the

New Hampshire Senate The New Hampshire State Senate is the upper house of the New Hampshire General Court, alongside the lower New Hampshire House of Representatives. The Senate has been meeting since 1784. The Senate consists of 24 members representing Senate distri ...

. Originally a Republican, McLane later became an

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 ...

and a

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (Cyprus) (DCY) **Democratic Part ...

Political beliefs

McLane was described as a liberal Republican who supported abortion rights and income tax.

Personal life

She married Malcolm McLane, a businessman and politician, and lived

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 ...

from 1952 until her death from

Alzheimer's disease Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a neurodegenerative disease and the cause of 60–70% of cases of dementia. The most common early symptom is difficulty in remembering recent events. As the disease advances, symptoms can include problems wit ...

in 2005. McLane's daughter is

Ann McLane Kuster Ann L. McLane Kuster (born September 5, 1956) is an American lawyer and politician who served as the U.S. representative for from 2013 to 2025. A member of the Democratic Party, she previously worked as a lobbyist. Kuster chaired the New Dem ...

, a

congresswoman A member of congress (MOC), also known as a congressman or congresswoman, is a person who has been appointed or elected and inducted into an official body called a congress, typically to represent a particular constituency in a legislature. The t ...

who has represented

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 ...

since 2013.

Notes

* {{DEFAULTSORT:McLane, Susan 1929 births 2005 deaths Politicians from Boston Politicians from Concord, New Hampshire Politicians from Hanover, New Hampshire Mount Holyoke College alumni Harvard Kennedy School alumni Women state legislators in New Hampshire New Hampshire Democrats New Hampshire independents New Hampshire Republicans New Hampshire state senators Members of the New Hampshire House of Representatives 20th-century American women politicians McLane family (New Hampshire) American feminists 20th-century members of the New Hampshire General Court