Chynoweth: Here’s why I’m running for Executive Council

I read with interest Brad Cook’s column (“Focus on the Executive Council,” May 11-24 NH Business Review) in which he discussed the unique role of the Executive Council and my qualifications for the role.

In terms of my qualifications, it’s simple. The core roles of the Executive Council are to help the state strike smart business deals and make smart hiring decisions. As a leader in business, that’s what I’ve done my entire professional career. Whether it was advising businesses as a corporate attorney, or, as a business leader, helping Dyn grow from 15 to 500 employees, positioning SilverTech to scale its operations, acting as a founding board member for a local community bank, leading the state’s largest Seed Stage Startup Investment Fund (MillWorks) or driving growth at the Advanced Regenerative Manufacturing Institute (ARMI), crafting good deals and hiring the right people has been central to my work. I believe these roles, especially the ones working in technology, give me a unique set of experiences and perspectives that can help the state drive better business deals and make smarter hiring decisions.

Mr. Cook rightly points out that the Executive Council doesn’t have say over “what” government we should have, but it has a huge role in “how” government should run. That’s exactly why I decided to run for this position. We can make better decisions regarding how state government uses technology to serve citizens and save taxpayer dollars. We can make better decisions on what transportation infrastructure we invest in to help grow our economy and draw a younger workforce into the state. We can be more innovative in the ways we look to tackle tough issues, like the opioid crisis. And we can work to keep politics out of the contracting process, especially on decisions like approving Planned Parenthood contracts to provide wellness visits, cancer screenings and family planning services to women, men and families across New Hampshire.

Lastly, and perhaps most importantly, the reason I’m running is because I want to set the same example for my two boys that my father set for me.

When I was growing up and Belmont High school was at risk of losing its accreditation due to poor facilities, my dad didn’t move the family or throw up his hands, he got involved and joined the school board. By the time my younger brother got to high school, Belmont had invested in a new, award-winning school.

My dad believed that, in New Hampshire, our way of government works best when citizens that felt they could make a difference stepped up and tried to help. Now that I have two boys of my own, I want to set the same example for them. I believe my time in business has given me experience that I could use to help the state make better decisions, so I want to step up, get involved and help make New Hampshire a better place to live, work and start a family. I hope others will join my campaign and the work to make New Hampshire an even better place to call home.

Gray Chynoweth of Manchester is a candidate for the Democratic nomination for the District 4 Executive Council seat.