“I’m in!”
In a social media post Thursday morning, four-term U.S. Rep. Chris Pappas (D) announced he’s running for U.S. Senate in 2026. He’ll make a formal announcement at his family’s Manchester restaurant Thursday afternoon.
Granite State Democrats received an email Wednesday from the Pappas campaign inviting them to join the congressman for a “major announcement” at the Puritan Backroom.
And while the campaign declined to respond to requests for comment, there was little doubt about what that announcement would be. More than a week ago, Axios reported Pappas was telling fellow House members he is running and that an announcement was expected this week.
“Finally!” said Manchester Alderman Joe Kelly Levasseur when he heard about the Pappas email. Levasseur is considering another GOP primary run in the 1st Congressional District next year.
Pappas, who turns 45 in June, has been telegraphing a Senate bid since Democrat incumbent Sen. Jeanne Shaheen announced she wouldn’t be seeking a fourth term. He has acknowledged the encouragement he’s received to run, posting on social media that he’s “overwhelmed” by it.
He also launched a “Grounded in Granite” tour of all 10 New Hampshire counties, including those outside his district.
The only serious challenge to Pappas winning his party’s nomination would come if first-term 2nd District U.S. Rep. Maggie Goodlander (D) decides to enter the race. Goodlander is the wife of former Biden National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan, and while she hasn’t lived in the district since the George W. Bush administration (she currently lives in Portsmouth and Washington, D.C., but rents in Nashua), she’s well-connected to national Democratic money.
University of New Hampshire political science professor Dante Scala told NH Bulletin he believes it’s possible Goodlander gets in.
“Goodlander last year demonstrated to me that she doesn’t always follow the conventional wisdom,” Scala said. “The conventional wisdom last year was that, ‘Well, she’s a carpetbagger. She’s just taking advantage of an open seat in order to move into the district. She’s not going to get the support of local people who see her as someone who’s coming in from out of state.’ And she ignored all of it, and she did really well.”
Pappas has had a great deal of success, too, having served in the New Hampshire House, as Hillsborough County Treasurer, and as an Executive Councilor. In 2018, he won a 10-way Democratic primary to become the 1st District nominee.
Pappas has handily defeated all of his GOP challengers, not surprising in a state where Democrats have won every federal election except one since the 2010 Tea Party wave.
But the National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC) is hopeful the race to fill Shaheen’s open seat could break the streak, particularly if former Gov. Chris Sununu decides to enter it. The popular four-term Republican declined to challenge U.S. Sen. Maggie Hassan in 2022, saying he had no interest in serving in the Senate.
Today, however, Sununu says “the door is cracked” on a possible Senate race and insists that “if I run, I will win.”
Former Ambassador and U.S. Sen. Scott Brown has made no secret he’s planning to run, though it’s unclear what he would do if Sununu jumps in.
The NRSC has already posted a website hitting Pappas on his voting record, targeting his votes defending sanctuary city policies and repeated votes in favor of allowing biological males to compete in girls’ sports.
“Chris Pappas supports biological males playing in women’s sports, wants to ban gas-powered vehicles, and voted to raise taxes on hard-working Granite Staters,” NRSC spokesman Nick Puglia told NHJournal. “Pappas is extremely out of touch, and New Hampshire families deserve better.”
Pappas frequently mentions national rankings that name him one of the most bipartisan members of Congress, a strength in a purple state and a district that narrowly supported Donald Trump in 2016. (Trump lost the 1st District in 2020 and 2024.)
However, Pappas’ ranking is deceiving due to overwhelming unity among congressional Democrats. For example, Roll Call ranks Pappas as the ninth most bipartisan Democrat based on how often he’s been willing to vote against the majority of his own party (10.1 percent of the time). But among Republicans, that percentage wouldn’t crack the top 40.
Democrats in the U.S. House vote in such solid lockstep that their most bipartisan member, Rep. Jared Golden (D-Maine), who votes against his party 24 percent of the time, would only rank as the 15th most bipartisan Republican.
Then again, Democrats who attended a recent Pappas town hall in Stratham, N.H., didn’t sound very interested in bipartisanship. Instead, they angrily demanded Pappas and his fellow Democrats take action to stop the Trump administration, breaking out into chants of “Fight! Fight! Fight!” and calling for Congress to impeach Trump.
“This is a tough situation we are facing as a country, and I’m committed to figuring this out together and to continue to listen to you all,” Pappas told the crowd.
Democrats will be tuned in Thursday to see if he has the same message when he announces his Senate candidacy.
EDITOR’S NOTE: This story has been updated to include Pappas’s Thursday morning social media post.
