PERSON: Ann Kuster

U.S. House of Representatives

Member of Congress

Ann L. McLane Kuster (born September 5, 1956) is an American lawyer and politician who served as the U.S. representative for New Hampshire’s 2nd congressional district from 2013 to 2025. A member of the Democratic Party, she previously worked as a lobbyist.

Kuster chaired the New Democrat Coalition, a centrist caucus among House Democrats.

Kuster announced on March 27, 2024, that she would not seek re-election to a seventh term in the U.S. House.

Kuster was born in Concord, New Hampshire, on September 5, 1956. Both her parents were politicians. Her father, Malcolm McLane, was mayor of Concord, a member of the New Hampshire Executive Council, and an owner of Wildcat Mountain Ski Area. In 1972, he ran for governor of New Hampshire as an independent. He received 20% of the vote in an election that Republican Mel Thomson won with a plurality of 40%.

Kuster’s mother, Susan McLane, was elected to the New Hampshire Senate as a Republican. In 1980, she ran for New Hampshire’s 2nd congressional district, coming in second in the crowded Republican primary, with 25% of the vote. Judd Gregg won with 34% of the vote, while Charles Bass (whom Kuster defeated in 2012) came in third with 22%. Kuster’s maternal great grandfather, John McLane, was governor of New Hampshire from 1905 to 1907. He was elected as a Republican in 1904 with 58% of the vote, defeating Democrat Henry Hollis.

Kuster graduated from Dartmouth College in 1978 with a degree in environmental policy. She received a J.D. from Georgetown University Law Center in 1984.

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