Rep. Frank Edelblut ponies up $250K to explore GOP gubernatorial run
A one-term Wilton lawmaker is putting his money where his mouth is as he becomes the first Granite Stater to announce he is officially “considering” a run for governor. In a written release, Rep. Frank Edelblut said he is committing $250,000 in personal funds to the exploratory bid and primary campaign.
The entrepreneur and investor has recently raised his profile by writing open letters to Gov. Maggie Hassan regarding high-profile news events. In one letter, Edelblut called on the Attorney General and a bipartisan commission to investigate “the potential illegal sale of body parts” by Planned Parenthood. In another, he asked the governor to allow National Guardsmen serving in military recruitment centers to arm themselves.
Edelblut will likely attempt to consolidate social conservatives and libertarians for his gubernatorial bid. He received a trifecta of conservative endorsements in 2014, garnering nods from the Republican Liberty Caucus, the New Hampshire Liberty Alliance and Cornerstone Policy Research.
During the campaign, Edelblut signed Cornerstone’s “Families First Pledge” in which he promised to “protect innocent human life from conception” and to “defend the natural family and traditional marriage.”
He warned of rampant voter fraud. “I know it is both unpopular and politically sensitive to talk about vote-fraud,” he wrote on Facebook. “Most people just want to pretend that it either does not exist or that if it exists, it is insignificant.”
In a campaign forum, Edelblut cited a case of double voting “uncovered” by Ed Naile and the Coalition of New Hampshire Taxpayers “right here in the town of Wilton.” (The allegation was later proven to be without merit by Wilton officials.)
After his election to the House, Edelblut sponsored a resolution that declared “the federal government has ceased to live under a proper interpretation of the Constitution.” It called for a constitutional convention to propose constitutional amendments to reduce the national debt, impose term limits and "limit the power and jurisdiction of the federal government.”
House Concurrent Resolution 3 was based on model legislation from Citizens for Self-Governance, a group led by Tea Party Patriots co-founder Mark Meckler. The House eventually tabled the bill in a 205-101 division vote.
In his first term, Edelblut earned an “A” rating from the New Hampshire Liberty Alliance and an 89.7% score from the House Republican Alliance. He represents Hillsborough District 38, a sprawling floterial swing district (PVI: D+1) comprising Antrim, Bennington, Francestown, Greenfield, Greenville, Hancock, Hillsborough, Lyndeborough, Wilton and Windsor.