Is Attorney General John Formella considering a run for Congress?
Rumors that the state’s top cop might enter the First Congressional District GOP primary have been circulating since U.S. Rep. Chris Pappas announced he’s abandoning the seat to run for U.S. Senate. Those rumors revved up this week when Granite State GOP insiders began passing around screen captures showing the internet domains FormellaforCongress.com and FormellaforCongress.net were registered earlier this month.
Political professionals say Formella could be a formidable candidate. They point out that before becoming attorney general, Formella served as Gov. Chris Sununu’s legal counsel, and he’s always been a politically active legal player. Another sign of possible political ambition: Formella is serving as president of the National Association of Attorneys General.
“John is a smart, tough and thoughtful AG who has been a leader on countless issues,” a veteran GOP insider told NHJournal. “He’s also an astute student of politics who no doubt learned a great deal about electoral success from Chris Sununu. If at some future point he chooses to become a candidate, he will have a compelling story to tell.”
Democrats are definitely taking him seriously. The far-left group Amplify NH sent out an email this week linking the website registration logs and attacking Formella.
“John Formella has spent nearly a decade defending Trump’s most extreme policies, from gutting environmental protections to undermining abortion rights and blocking gun safety laws, all while helping to create an $80 million hole in our state budget,” said Amplify New Hampshire Executive Director Ryan Mahoney. “Instead of standing with hardworking Granite Staters, Formella has shown time and time again that he will prioritize corporations, lobbyists, and the ultra-wealthy.”
However, a spokesperson for Formella flatly told NHJournal the attorney general had nothing to do with the online activity.
“Attorney General Formella remains fully focused on serving the people of New Hampshire in his current role. He did not authorize and was not involved in the registration of these domain names.”
The fact that Formella’s name is still being floated among the party faithful is a sign he’s got a base of support in the GOP. It also reflects the weakness of the field for Republicans in the First Congressional District.
Thus far, 2024 GOP primary candidate Chris Bright has indicated he’s very likely to enter the race. (Bright finished fourth in last year’s primary.) State Rep. Brian Cole (R-Manchester) is also believed to be seriously considering the race. And three other 2024 primary veterans — Manchester Alderman Joe Kelly Levasseur, businesswoman Holly Noveltsky, and 2024 nominee Russell Prescott — have said they’re considering another run.
Maura Sullivan, who lost to eventual Congressman Pappas in 2018, is already running for the Democratic nomination. Progressive journalist Hanna Trudo recently moved back to the Granite State and says she may run as well. However, if Stefany Shaheen — daughter of retiring U.S. Sen. Jeanne Shaheen — gets in the race as rumored, she is widely viewed as the presumed frontrunner.
Whoever Democrats nominate will be the frontrunner in the general election. Republicans have won just one federal election in New Hampshire since 2010.
EDITOR’S NOTE: An earlier version of this article mistakenly reported the Chris Bright has declared his candidacy in the NHGOP First Congressional district primary. We regret the error.
