New Hampshire voters have set the field for one of the year’s most closely watched Senate races: Republican John E. Sununu against Democrat Chris Pappas, competing for the seat Sen. Jeanne Shaheen is vacating after deciding not to seek reelection. The Associated Press reports the contest is among a handful nationally that could determine which party controls the Senate come November, with both nominees now having eight weeks to make their case to general-election voters.
Pappas, who is stepping away from his 1st Congressional District seat after four terms, moved quickly to link Sununu to former President Donald Trump. Speaking to supporters at his family’s restaurant in Manchester, Pappas said, “While New Hampshire families are struggling to make ends meet, John Sununu has thrown his lot in with Donald Trump and supports the policies that cater to big corporations and billionaires while they make life harder for Granite Staters.” His campaign also released a social media ad branding Sununu “a sequel we can’t afford.” Pappas added, “We’ve got to turn the page on Donald Trump’s reckless leadership, on corruption, on the rigged economy and on costs, and this is not the time to turn it back to a failed politician from the past.”
Sununu, at a victory event at a Manchester ski area, dismissed Pappas as “a career politician” who is “not an independent voice for New Hampshire.” He went further, saying, “Chris Pappas has three main qualities: ineffective, partisan and out of touch with New Hampshire.”
Notably, Trump endorsed Sununu despite Sununu having called Trump “a loser” during the 2024 presidential campaign.
Sununu secured the Republican nomination over seven rivals, including former U.S. Sen. Scott Brown, who accused him of coasting on his family name. One voter, 83-year-old Jim Loomis of Bow, told the AP he backed Brown back in 2014 but voted for Sununu this time. Of Brown, Loomis said, “he never got traction back again.” Of Sununu, he said, “I think what he’s done for work over the years has kept him close enough to what’s going on, and then with his family ties, I just think he’s got a more stable base.”
Pappas beat four Democratic challengers, including Karishma Manzur, described by the AP as a democratic socialist.
Open House Seat Draws Shaheen Family Name
With Pappas vacating the 1st District, Stefany Shaheen — daughter of Sen. Jeanne Shaheen — won a tight Democratic primary and will face Republican Anthony DiLorenzo, a car-dealership owner endorsed by Trump. Before her race was even called, Shaheen told supporters she would “take on Donald Trump and his disastrous corruption, his endless war, his attacks on small business with these disastrous tariffs, the skyrocketing costs families are facing in New Hampshire and across the country.” She added, “We can bring the real change that’s needed, starting with healthcare, starting with Medicare for all.”
Maura Sullivan, a retired Marine and former VA official making a second run after a 2018 bid, told supporters earlier in the evening, “What we are doing right now is send such an incredible message for change, and that politics as usual is not, is not going to get us where we need to go.”
On the Republican side, DiLorenzo told supporters, “Our campaign is about prosperity,” adding, “I believe that Washington, D.C., needs more pragmatic businesspeople.”
Other Races on the Ballot
In the 2nd District, first-term Rep. Maggie Goodlander fended off a primary challenge from progressive state lawmaker and nurse Paige Beauchemin. On the Republican side, Lily Tang Williams — the GOP’s nominee two years ago — won the nomination on her third attempt.
Republican Gov. Kelly Ayotte defeated two little-known opponents in her primary as she seeks a second two-year term. Healthcare attorney Cinde Warmington ran unopposed for the Democratic nomination.
Voters also nominated candidates for the entire state Legislature, where Republicans currently hold the majority in the 400-member House and lead 16–8 in the state Senate. New legislation will move future state primaries to the second Tuesday in June.
Republicans see the open Senate seat as an opportunity to regain ground in a region that has long leaned Democratic in Congress. Democrats need a net gain of four seats nationally to retake the Senate, making New Hampshire’s race a key defensive fight for the party.
