Thomas Patrick Oppel is an American politician, consultant, and former journalist. He is currently a member of 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 ...
from the
Grafton 9th district representing
Canaan
CanaanThe current scholarly edition of the Septuagint, Greek Old Testament spells the word without any accents, cf. Septuaginta : id est Vetus Testamentum graece iuxta LXX interprets. 2. ed. / recogn. et emendavit Robert Hanhart. Stuttgart : D ...
,
Dorchester, and
Orange
Orange most often refers to:
*Orange (fruit), the fruit of the tree species '' Citrus'' × ''sinensis''
** Orange blossom, its fragrant flower
** Orange juice
*Orange (colour), the color of an orange fruit, occurs between red and yellow in the vi ...
. A resident of
Canaan, New Hampshire
Canaan is a town in Grafton County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 3,794 at the 2020 census. It is the location of Mascoma State Forest. Canaan is home to the Cardigan Mountain School, the town's largest employer.
The main ...
, since 2000,
Oppel is the secretary of the Canaan Planning Board, of which he has been a member since 2021, and was previously a board member from 2005 to 2007. He is also the chair of the Canaan Economic Development Committee.
[
]
Biography
Oppel received a bachelor's degree in English literature from Seton Hall University
Seton Hall University (SHU) is a Private university, private Catholic Church, Catholic research university in South Orange, New Jersey, United States. Founded in 1856 by then-Bishop James Roosevelt Bayley and named after his aunt, Saint Elizab ...
with a minor in psychology and a teaching certificate in secondary education. He later attended 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 ...
. Oppel began his career as a political journalist for United Press International
United Press International (UPI) is an American international news agency whose newswires, photo, news film, and audio services provided news material to thousands of newspapers, magazines, radio and television stations for most of the 20th ce ...
and several newspapers in New England
New England is a region consisting of six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York (state), New York to the west and by the ...
and the South
South is one of the cardinal directions or compass points. The direction is the opposite of north and is perpendicular to both west and east.
Etymology
The word ''south'' comes from Old English ''sūþ'', from earlier Proto-Germanic ''*sunþa ...
.Hudson, New Hampshire
Hudson is a town in Hillsborough County, New Hampshire, United States. It is located along the Massachusetts state line. The population was 25,394 at the 2020 census. It is the tenth-largest municipality (town or city) in the state, by populatio ...
.Mike Espy
Alphonso Michael Espy (born November 30, 1953) is an American lawyer and politician who served as the 25th United States secretary of agriculture from 1993 to 1994. He was both the first African American and the first person from the Deep Sout ...
's successful congressional campaign. Before founding his own communications firm in 2003, Oppel was a partner in a Washington
Washington most commonly refers to:
* George Washington (1732–1799), the first president of the United States
* Washington (state), a state in the Pacific Northwest of the United States
* Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States
** A ...
-based media consulting firm. Oppel was the chief of staff to the United States Secretary of the Navy
The Secretary of the Navy (SECNAV) is a statutory officer () and the head (chief executive officer) of the United States Department of the Navy, Department of the Navy, a military department within the United States Department of Defense. On Mar ...
, Ray Mabus
Raymond Edwin Mabus Jr. (; born October 11, 1948) is an American politician and lawyer. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, he served as the 75th United States Secretary of the Navy from 2009 to 2017. Mabus previo ...
, during 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 ...
's administration.[ Oppel defeated Kevin Howard in the ]2024 New Hampshire House of Representatives election
The 2024 New Hampshire House of Representatives election was held on November 5, 2024, alongside the 2024 United States elections.
Republicans picked up 21 seats, expanding their narrow one-seat majority.
New Hampshire elects many of its st ...
for the Grafton 9th district.
Political positions
Oppel is opposed to the establishment of a state income tax
In addition to Federal government of the United States, federal Income tax in the United States, income tax collected by the United States, most individual U.S. states collect a state income tax. Some local governments also impose an income tax, ...
and sales tax
A sales tax is a tax paid to a governing body for the sales of certain goods and services. Usually laws allow the seller to collect funds for the tax from the consumer at the point of purchase. When a tax on goods or services is paid to a govern ...
.
Electoral history
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Oppel, Thomas
Living people
1953 births
Place of birth missing (living people)
Democratic Party members of the New Hampshire House of Representatives
21st-century members of the New Hampshire General Court
Seton Hall University alumni
Dartmouth College alumni