President Trump endorsed former Sen. John E. Sununu (R-NH) over former Sen. Scott Brown (R-MA) in the Republican primary for the New Hampshire U.S. Senate seat.
“Republicans have recruited a Sununu to run for Senate in New Hampshire after all,” Politico reports.
“Former Sen. John E. Sununu said Wednesday that he is running to reclaim the seat he held for a single term before Democrat Jeanne Shaheen ousted him in 2008. Shaheen is retiring next year.”
“Former Sen. John Sununu (R-NH) will announce whether he’s running for Senate in the next two weeks, per multiple people familiar with his thinking. It’s widely expected Sununu will enter the race, but the former senator hasn’t made a final decision,” Punchbowl News reports.
“Republicans have been talking a big game about winning New Hampshire’s open Senate seat. But there’s a brutal looming GOP primary featuring Sununu and former Sen. Scott Brown (R-MA).”
An internal GOP poll has Rep. Chris Pappas (D-NH) up by only 2 points over former Sen. John Sununu (R) in a potential Senate matchup, Punchbowl News reports.
Former Sen. John E. Sununu (R-NH) is interested in running for Senate again to replace retiring Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), who ended his Senate career back in 2008, NOTUS reports.
“This would be a huge win for national Republicans who view Sununu as one of their last chances to make the New Hampshire race competitive this election cycle against the likely Democratic candidate, Rep. Chris Pappas. Former Sen. Scott Brown — who represented Massachusetts and previously lost to Shaheen in 2014 in New Hampshire — has declared he’s running on the Republican side.”
“Scott Brown, a Republican who once represented Massachusetts in the U.S. Senate, announced his second bid Wednesday for the New Hampshire Senate seat being vacated by Democrat Jeanne Shaheen next year,” the AP reports.
Rep. Maggie Goodlander (D-NH) told WMUR that she won’t run for Senate, which could clear the Democratic field for Rep. Chris Pappas (D-NH).
Former New Hampshire Gov. Chris Sununu (R) told the Pulse of New Hampshire that he will not run for the U.S. Senate, a setback for Republicans’ hopes to flip the open seat.
Rep. Chris Pappas (D-NH) is telling his colleagues that he’ll announce his campaign for New Hampshire’s open Senate seat early next month, Axios reports.
Former New Hampshire Gov. Chris Sununu (R) is keeping the door open to a possible Republican run next year in the race to succeed retiring Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D), Fox News reports.
Said Sununu: “I’m not saying it’s a high probability. Can’t wait to jump in. Definitely not.”
“Former Gov. Chris Sununu isn’t closing the door on running for the Senate in New Hampshire, which would make him a powerful contender for the GOP nomination and force Democrats to use more resources to defend the seat,” the Washington Times reports.
Said Sununu: “I have not ruled it out completely, but folks in Washington have asked me to think about it and to consider it, and that is just kind of where I am.”
Rep. Chris Pappas (D-NH) is “definitely considering” running to replace Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) in 2026, Axios reports.
“The 44-year-old congressman, first elected in 2018, would become the first openly gay male senator if elected — a major milestone.”
“Pappas also represents a swing district, making him an attractive prospect to Senate Democrats eager to hold onto Shaheen’s competitive seat.”
Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) “will not run for re-election in 2026, bringing an end to a long and singular political career and further complicating Democrats’ efforts to regain a majority in the Senate,” the New York Times reports.
“Her decision not to seek a fourth term will immediately set off a high-stakes race in a state whose voters are famously fickle. Last fall, New Hampshire voters supported former Vice President Kamala Harris for president and elected Democrats to Congress, but they also voted for a Republican governor and expanded Republican majorities in the state legislature.”
New Hampshire U.S. Senate candidate Don Bolduc (R) told the New Yorker he disagreed with Donald Trump’s assertion that he would have won easily had he stayed “strong and true” to election denial.
Said Bolduc: “That’s absolutely wrong. I would have lost by even more!”
He added: “My advice to him was that if you come up to New England to campaign, and you do it on election denial, you won’t get anywhere. It is not an issue you should be talking about. Joe Biden is the President, and that’s it.”
“Let’s live free or die, baby.”
— New Hampshire Senate candidate Don Bolduc (R), in his latest ad.
A new St. Anselm College poll in New Hampshire finds Don Bolduc (R) just ahead of Sen. Maggie Hassan (R), 48% to 47%.
New Hampshire U.S. Senate nominee Don Bolduc (R) repeated the baseless claims that children are identifying as cats and that schools were accommodating their demands to use litter boxes instead of toilets, American Independent reports.
Said Bolduc: “Identifying as a cat, hissing at other students, meowing during tests, licking themselves like cats do to clean themselves. Very, very disruptive behavior, very unnecessary behavior, and behavior that doesn’t belong in the classroom. And nobody can do anything about it. The teachers can’t do anything about it, everybody’s hands tied and they have to facilitate this type of behavior which detracts from the discipline required in a classroom, the regimentation required in a classroom, and people’s ability to learn. Very, very distracting.”
“The National Republican Senatorial Committee is recommitting resources into the New Hampshire Senate race, just days after the Senate GOP’s top super PAC cancelled its spending on behalf of nominee Don Bolduc,” Axios reports.
An Emerson College poll showed Sen. Maggie Hassan (D) leading Dan Bolduc (R), 48% to 45% — within the margin of error.
Taegan Goddard is the founder of Political Wire, one of the earliest and most influential political web sites. He also runs Political Job Hunt, Electoral Vote Map and the Political Dictionary.
Goddard spent more than a decade as managing director and chief operating officer of a prominent investment firm in New York City. Previously, he was a policy adviser to a U.S. Senator and Governor.
Goddard is also co-author of You Won - Now What? (Scribner, 1998), a political management book hailed by prominent journalists and politicians from both parties. In addition, Goddard's essays on politics and public policy have appeared in dozens of newspapers across the country.
Goddard earned degrees from Vassar College and Harvard University. He lives in New York with his wife and three sons.
Goddard is the owner of Goddard Media LLC.