Former teacher runs for Statehouse in Laconia, rallying for education reform

LACONIA — Paul Rossi, a former math teacher, is running a campaign rallying for educational reform, workforce development, and lower energy costs. The Republican is vying for a seat representing Laconia — Belknap District 5 — in the Statehouse.

Rossi is running alongside Republicans Timothy Minor, Cody Pfaff, and incumbent Rep. Mike Bordes (R-Laconia), also the city’s mayor, who will all go through the primary Tuesday, Sept. 8. They’ll face Democrats Denise Riley, Lois Kessin, and Marcia Hayward in the General Election on Tuesday, Nov. 3. Incumbent Rep. Charlie St. Clair (D-Laconia) died Saturday.

Four of those candidates will earn seats in the Statehouse for a two-year term, representing Wards 1, 3, 4, 5, and 6.

Who is Paul Rossi?

Rossi and his wife were looking to leave New York City, and start their retirement, driving to various states to find the best fit. They eventually landed on Laconia, as it reminded Rossi of his hometown of Ithaca, New York. He got to know residents prior to his move, who he described as “welcoming and neighborly.”

Rossi has had multiple careers, working in technology for many years before getting a “calling” to become a teacher, in his late 30s. He taught at a variety of schools, public and private, in New York, for a dozen years. Rossi educated students at multiple failing schools in Brooklyn, and ended his teaching career at a charter school in the Bronx, where he noted he learned more than anywhere else.

Rossi is a co-founder and director of the Terra Firma Teaching Alliance, established in 2023. The alliance supports traditional teachers nationwide and internationally, working with educators in England, France, and Canada. The alliance helps place and hire teachers who “aren’t a good fit in their current schools,” both public and private. The alliance’s mission, according to the Terra Firma website, reads: “We are K-12 teachers alarmed by the rise of illiberal agendas in education, working to restore integrity and quality to our profession.”

Now, Rossi is retired, and has a lot of time on his hands, which he spends fixing up his home, playing music, and tutoring.

“One of the things I really thought I could do is make a contribution to the town by representing them in Concord.”

He has run his campaign by talking with residents at their homes or businesses, and listening to what's important to them. Rossi is running as a Republican with conservative principles, and has received support from the Belknap County Republican Committee.

Education reform

Rossi said he plans to visit Laconia schools once they are back in session, as he has spent much time researching public education statistics. Rossi said since 2013, National Assessment of Educational Progress results have been declining. He also said spending per student has increased dramatically on top of declining enrollment. Rossi said the Laconia School District has dropped from roughly 2,300 students to 1,700 students.

“Across New Hampshire, generally, I think that it is not fair to ask parents of their children to essentially not have options,” Rossi said. “That’s why I support EFAs and I support the subsidy. It’s not really a subsidy, because it should be their money in the first place, to support tuition at private schools.”

Rossi noted enrollment has gone up at private schools, such as Laconia Christian Academy, as more families take advantage of education freedom accounts, especially since there are no income cap restrictions as of 2025.

“Does that mean that I don’t like public schools? No, public schools are important, but they do need to compete out of fairness with options parents should have,” Rossi said.

As a former math teacher, Rossi is concerned with Laconia’s math proficiency, which was 11% before the COVID-19 pandemic. Rossi said COVID was a factor, but many proficiency declines started before 2020. The Granite State's math proficiency rate was roughly 44% as of 2025.

“This is an area I really think we need to look at, because math is not everybody's strong point. I recognize that as a math teacher. I've had students tell me math is not my thing. I get it. However, it is such an entry into higher paying jobs and technical fields,” Rossi said. "With the introduction of AI and advanced technology, the people who are going to survive AI are going to be the people that are programming the AI, and there's a lot of math in that. I think it's one of those things I would like to address, perhaps with the program to supplement the math education.”

As of May 2026, there were 389 special education students of the 1,764 enrolled in Laconia schools. Rossi said during his time teaching at a charter school in the Bronx, some students were still at a third grade math level when he was teaching them ninth grade algebra. Math is a subject “where people get promoted beyond their ability, and then they get just more and more lost,” he said. Rossi said the special attention needed for students who have fallen behind is hard to get in public schools, and is not a special education issue.

Rossi supports expanding vocational training opportunities, which he discussed with his running mate, Cody Pfaff. Rossi is looking into the work Laconia High School’s Huot Career and Technical Center is doing, as well as Daniels Electric Corp.

When Rowell’s Services staff came over to fix Rossi’s sewer pump, he asked them hypothetically, if he had a nephew, should he advise the nephew to take out loans and get a bachelor’s degree right now? They told him, “No, he should become an electrician, a sewage person, or HVAC, or anything technical, because the economy has changed to where that’s just so much of a better deal for kids now.” Rossi said we need to recognize this, and give more kids that option.

Energy costs

Rossi is passionate about energy costs, and has been conducting his own research, as he believes this is something on which Laconia can really make a difference. First, Rossi will look into the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative, which he refers to as a “carbon trade system.” He is looking into how much of these costs are passed down to the consumer.

Rossi said to stop carbon from entering the atmosphere, he does not believe renewable energy is the way to go, and nuclear energy is cleaner, such as the nuclear plant in Seabrook.

Rossi is critical of the renewable portfolio standard, as nuclear energy is not recognized under state regulation.

“So, I think we should look at trying to focus on clean energy rather than renewables, and then that way, we're not actually putting a hand in the market. We're saying, 'Look, whatever the most efficient delivery system is or production system is, we should use that.'”

Rossi also pointed out that pipelines, connecting from the Appalachians, cause New Englanders to pay higher energy costs, because “they are bottlenecks in that pipeline system.” Rossi said due to the system, people are using natural gas to heat their homes in the winter and generate electricity. Because of supply and demand, prices then go up.

One “workaround” Rossi proposed is liquefied natural gas, which would come in on the coast to Boston, cutting off the pipeline. The Jones Act requires all goods transported by water between U.S. ports to be completely U.S. built, owned, and flagged with a U.S. crew. This is a protective law, as we currently import natural gas from places like Trinidad, and Jamaica, to heat homes in New Hampshire. Rossi said the law is "currently limiting the market.”

“There are lots of elements that I would like to be able to address at the state level, and I think energy is one of those fascinating ones.”

Taxes, zoning reform

“Philosophically, property taxes are actually a form of wealth tax. Let's be honest. So, basically, it's not an income tax, it's a tax on the value of your home,” Rossi said. “So, if you are a homeowner and property taxes are too high, you're essentially bleeding wealth out of your investment.”

Rossi said many Democratic leaders have promised replacing property taxes with income taxes, but realistically, property taxes never go down.

“This is what happened in New Jersey. So, I'm very suspicious of politicians that want to introduce other taxes, claiming that they are going to replace property tax when in fact they don't,” Rossi said. “But, it's a difficult issue, and I think you can limit property tax increases if you can focus on the spending, and try to control that.”

Rossi said as he talks to community members, his general philosophy, aligning with that of his party and conservatives in general, is to “free up regulations in the market to solve issues the government is not well positioned to do.”

Rossi said this would look like bringing new businesses into the community, and finding ways to lower housing costs. He said some of this may be focusing on zoning issues.

Rossi referenced an October 2025 decision by Laconia City Council, approving a rewritten Housing Redevelopment Overlay District, aiming to encourage both workforce and affordable housing.

“They had this on the books for a decade, and nothing was built. And so they realized, 'We have to make an adjustment to this and create more incentives for people to build here,'” Rossi said. “That's an example of listening to what's happening on the ground and fixing it, which is something I think that they've done right.”

As Rossi continues to campaign, he finds it exciting to speak with residents to find out what’s important to them. From conversations so far, he's found tackling issues regarding housing, homelessness, and bringing more opportunity to Laconia are of the greatest importance.

Rossi recently visited the Salvation Army’s Carey House, and supports local shelters providing a safe place for families on their journey to sobriety, or their path to getting back on their feet and employed. Rossi also thinks the city should be devoting more resources to cleaning up drug issues and getting people who need it into recovery.

“I've really tried to respond, and I'm going to continue to respond, to what people care about here. Because there's a saying, 'all politics is local,' and that's definitely the case in Laconia. So, I think I'd be really gratified to be given the chance to represent people here.”

Editor's note: An earlier version of this story included an alternate headline. Paul Rossi is a former teacher running to represent Laconia in the Statehouse.