On Tuesday, voters in New Hampshire will head to the polls to select nominees from both the Democratic and Republican parties for the seat being vacated by retiring Senator Jeanne Shaheen. This election is seen as a pivotal moment for both parties as they vie for control of the Senate.
In addition to the Senate contest, residents of the 1st Congressional District will also be voting to fill an open seat, as Democratic Representative Chris Pappas is running for the Senate.
Key races to monitor today include:
To secure a Senate majority, Democrats must gain four additional seats while defending all of their current positions, including in New Hampshire. Although the state has not supported a Republican presidential candidate since 2000 and has not elected a GOP senator since 2010, Republicans have maintained control of the governorship since 2017. In the 2024 presidential election, former Vice President Kamala Harris won New Hampshire by a narrow margin of three points.
Chris Pappas, who has served as the representative for the 1st Congressional District since 2019 and is the first openly gay member of Congress from New Hampshire, is contending in a primary against Karishma Manzur, a member of the Democratic Socialists of America. Pappas has received an endorsement from Shaheen.
The contrasts between Pappas, a centrist, and Manzur, a medical scientist advocating for progressive initiatives such as Medicare for All and campaign finance reform, are evident. Manzur aims to achieve an upset similar to that of Angie Nixon, a Florida state representative and DSA member who won her Senate primary in August. Other democratic socialists have also found success in congressional races in New York and Colorado.
Republicans will also select their nominee on Tuesday. Former Senator John Sununu, who lost to Shaheen in 2008, is competing against former Senator Scott Brown, who served Massachusetts in the Senate from 2010 to 2013 and was defeated by Shaheen in the 2014 race. Sununu, who represented the 1st District from 1997 to 2003, is the brother of popular former Governor Chris Sununu and the son of former Governor John Sununu.
With the endorsement of former President Trump, Sununu is currently favored to win the nomination.
The National Republican Congressional Committee has identified the 1st Congressional District as a key target for this election cycle. Although Democrats have held this southeastern New Hampshire seat since 2017, it has been highly contested in past elections, changing party control five times since 2006.
There are nine Democrats competing for their party’s nomination, with a particularly fierce battle between frontrunners Maura Sullivan and Stefany Shaheen. Sullivan, who previously worked at the Department of Veterans Affairs and the Pentagon during the Obama administration, lost to Pappas in the 2018 Democratic primary.
Stefany Shaheen, a former city councilor in Portsmouth, is the daughter of the retiring Democratic senator. According to data from the Federal Election Commission, Sullivan has raised over $1 million more than Shaheen.
On the Republican side, five candidates are vying for the nomination. In July, Trump endorsed businessman Anthony DiLorenzo, calling him “a very successful businessman and entrepreneur.” DiLorenzo has a considerable fundraising lead over Hollie Noveletsky, the CEO of Novel Iron Works, who is also seen as a potential frontrunner. However, recent polls indicate that the two candidates are nearly tied.
Republican Kelly Ayotte, who was first elected in 2024, is seeking a second term and faces two challengers in the primary, although she is expected to secure the nomination without difficulty.
Meanwhile, Democrat Cindie Warmington is running unopposed for her party’s nomination.
