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Pappas and Sununu win New Hampshire Senate primaries

September 9, 2026

Democratic Rep. Chris Pappas and Republican former Sen. John Sununu win their New Hampshire Senate primaries and will meet in November for the state's open Senate seat.

John Sununu, a former U.S. senator whose father and brother each served as New Hampshire governor, carries a name well known in state politics, where no Republican has won a Senate election since 2010.

Key facts

AP News reports that Americans for Prosperity Action, a conservative super PAC in the Koch network, has put $3.3 million or more into the race since June 30. That money supports Sununu and works against Pappas, the Democratic front-runner. CNN reports its Decision Desk projecting that Pappas and Sununu will meet on the November ballot for New Hampshire's open Senate seat, and CBS News reports the same projection. USA Today puts both men on that ballot, and NBC News carries the same outcome.

CBS News reports Sununu winning Tuesday's Republican primary over former Sen. Scott Brown. CNN reports Pappas, a congressman serving his fourth term from a battleground district, winning the Democratic primary over Karishma Manzur, who ran as a democratic socialist and challenged his record in Congress and his dealings with the American Israel Public Affairs Committee. CBS News reports Pappas telling supporters, "While New Hampshire families are struggling to make ends meet, John Sununu has thrown his lot in with Donald Trump," and CNN, AP News, The New York Times and Politico carry the same remark. The New York Times reports the party establishment prevailing across the New Hampshire primaries, and Politico reports New Hampshire Democrats preparing for a difficult Senate race.

AP News reports that Pappas has behind him most of the New Hampshire Democratic establishment, from Shaheen and Sen. Maggie Hassan to former governor John Lynch, and that Democrats need a net gain of four seats to win back the chamber. CBS News reports that the last Republican New Hampshire sent to the Senate won in 2010, while Republicans have held the governor's office since 2017. One account ties the race to replace retiring Democratic Sen. Jeanne Shaheen to which party runs the Senate for the second half of Trump's final term, and another account does not carry that framing. The November pairing is fully reported across these outlets, and the seat's bearing on control of the Senate stays open.

“While New Hampshire families are struggling to make ends meet, John Sununu has thrown his lot in with Donald Trump,” said Pappas.

Still developing

The race to replace retiring Democratic Sen. Jeanne Shaheen is held differently from one account to the next, on whether the seat could determine control of the U.S. Senate. The record leaves the point open as of the draft.

How settled the reporting is

Reported 95% · Contested 1% · Developing 4%

Sources