Democrat Chris Pappas defeats John E. Sununu in New Hampshire Senate race 2026 By Luís Henrique Costa
4 min read
 |
Democratic U.S. Representative Chris Pappas won the Senate race in New Hampshire on Tuesday, keeping a seat that matters for the balance of power in Congress. The Associated Press called the race after the first districts finished their count, so Republicans did not flip one of the most targeted seats in this midterm round.
With the win, Pappas becomes the first openly gay man elected to the U.S. Senate. He beat Republican John E. Sununu, a former senator who was trying to return to Capitol Hill after 18 years away from legislative office. The open race came after Democratic Senator Jeanne Shaheen decided to retire, ending three consecutive terms in Washington.
The contest drew tens of millions of dollars and national attention because it pitted two well-known figures against each other. Pappas, 46, served four consecutive terms in the U.S. House for New Hampshire’s 1st Congressional District, an area that often swings between parties. Sununu carries a famous political name: he is the son of former governor John H. Sununu and the brother of Chris Sununu, who led the state’s executive for four consecutive terms. The Chris Sununu named here is the former governor, not the Republican candidate.
During the campaign, Sununu stressed his independence from his party and distanced himself from President Donald Trump to win over moderate suburban voters. That strategy was not enough to offset the unpopularity of the federal government in the state, where Trump never won a presidential race. Pappas focused his message on the cost of living, civil rights and the economic independence of the middle class in New England.
The result also came under the rules applied this year. The U.S. Supreme Court kept in force a state law that bars student identification cards as the only accepted proof at polling stations. Even with those limits on college students, turnout was high in the most populous cities, which allowed the projection during the early count.
What lifted Pappas to victory in New Hampshire
The confirmation of the term reflects a mix of operational and political factors at the local and national levels. The list below summarizes the main ones.
Follow: Famous couples who turned TV set romances into real-life love stories
- Independent voters held firm in the Manchester and Nashua metro areas, which are key demographic centers for the state count.
- Moderate voters kept rejecting the federal government’s agenda, making it hard for Sununu to separate himself from it.
- Pappas’s four House terms gave him high name recognition among voters.
- Volunteers mobilized around civil rights, energized by the historic significance of his candidacy.
- The party alignment built over the years during Jeanne Shaheen’s Senate tenure carried over to Pappas.
Key dates from 2008 to the new Congress in 2027
The race for the open seat followed a schedule set by state authorities. The main dates are listed below.
- 2008: Jeanne Shaheen defeated John Sununu and took the seat, ending a Republican hold that began in 2003.
- 2018: Chris Pappas won, for the first time, the House seat for New Hampshire’s 1st Congressional District, and took office in January 2019.
- September 8, 2026: State primaries. Pappas beat Karishma Manzur with 65% of the Democratic vote, and Sununu beat former senator Scott Brown in the Republican primary.
- November 3, 2026: Voters cast ballots at polling places across the state in the general election.
- January 3, 2027: Scheduled swearing-in ceremony and start of the new legislative term in Congress.
What the result means for Senate control
The win reduces the Republican Party’s room to form a simple majority in the Senate. The 2026 renewal covers 35 of the chamber’s 100 seats and all 435 House seats, so each seat the opposition keeps limits the White House’s ability to confirm judicial nominees and pass tax measures without major concessions.
Democrats needed to defend their seats in the Northeast to support any plan to block legislation. Sununu’s defeat ends the attempt by the traditional conservative wing to return to Congress through New Hampshire and strengthens younger names in the party’s leadership in Washington.
Read also: Josh Shapiro and JB Pritzker win re-election as Democrats hold key governor races
The local outcome also shows that the Democratic campaign kept broad coalitions in coastal states. With New Hampshire settled, national attention turns to the count in Midwest and West Coast states, where ballots are still being counted to decide which bloc sets the pace in the Capitol from January.
How to follow the count and make results official
Official vote data follows a set of public procedures. Three steps define how the result becomes final.
- Municipal and district results are released continuously by local election offices and by the office of New Hampshire’s Secretary of State.
- Real-time updates are compiled by the Associated Press from the tallies sent by polling places.
- County election commissions check the tally sheets and make the final figures official in the days after the vote.
