Sununu and Pappas Set for New Hampshire Senate Showdown After Primary Wins

Former Sen. John E. Sununu won New Hampshire's Republican Senate primary on Tuesday, defeating former Massachusetts Sen. Scott Brown and setting up a November race against Democratic Rep. Chris Pappas for an open seat that could help decide control of the Senate.

Sununu took about 68.5% of the Republican vote. Pappas, a four-term congressman from the state's 1st District, won the Democratic nomination with roughly 65% against Karishma Manzur, a medical scientist. The winner in November will succeed Democratic Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, who is retiring.

The contest is the first open Senate race in New Hampshire since 2010, which was also the last time a Republican won a Senate election in the state. With Democrats needing to gain seats to win the majority, holding New Hampshire is close to a requirement for their plans, and flipping it is a top Republican goal.

A familiar name returns

Sununu comes from one of New Hampshire's best-known political families. He held this Senate seat for one term after winning it in 2002, then lost it in 2008 to Shaheen in a rematch of their first race. His brother Chris served four terms as governor, and his father, John H. Sununu, was governor before becoming White House chief of staff under President George H.W. Bush.

Brown, who represented Massachusetts in the Senate and later served as U.S. ambassador to New Zealand, moved to New Hampshire years ago and ran for the Senate there once before, losing to Shaheen in 2014. His second attempt ended well short of Sununu's total.

Pappas, first elected to the House in 2018, is the state's first openly gay member of Congress. His Senate run opened up his House seat and set off one of the most closely watched primaries of the night.

Shaheen's daughter wins a nail-biter

In the Democratic primary for the 1st District, Stefany Shaheen, the senator's daughter, edged Maura Sullivan by fewer than 2,000 votes. The race was not called until shortly after 12:30 a.m. Wednesday. Shaheen will face Republican Anthony DiLorenzo of Portsmouth in November.

In the 2nd District, Democratic Rep. Maggie Goodlander easily defeated state Rep. Paige Beauchemin. Republican Lily Tang Williams won her party's nomination again, setting up a rematch of the 2024 race, which Goodlander won 211,641 to 187,810.

At the top of the state ticket, Gov. Kelly Ayotte, a first-term Republican, easily won renomination. Former Executive Councilor Cinde Warmington ran unopposed for the Democratic nomination and will challenge her.

Why New Hampshire matters

New Hampshire has become a genuine swing state in federal races. Voters there have backed Democrats for Senate in every election since 2010 while regularly electing Republican governors, including Ayotte and Chris Sununu. A large bloc of undeclared voters, who can take part in either party's primary, often decides close statewide contests.

That split personality is what makes the Senate race so important to both parties. Republicans see Sununu's family name and his record as a moderate on some issues as a way to win over independents. Democrats are betting that Pappas' years representing half the state in the House, and national attention on the fight for the Senate, will keep the seat in their column.

What happens next

The general election is Nov. 3. Sununu and Pappas now shift from primary campaigns to an eight-week sprint aimed at the state's independents, while the tight 1st District race and the Goodlander-Williams rematch give both parties House seats to defend or target on the same ballot.

Image: Farragutful via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0