Chris Pappas Wins New Hampshire Senate Race, Making U.S. History

New Hampshire's Senate contest offered Republicans a chance to capture a Democratic seat. Democratic Rep. Chris Pappas and Republican former Sen. John E. Sununu were competing to succeed Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, according to The Hill.

Shaheen's retirement opened the race after three terms. National Democrats put additional money into the contest, New York Post reported, reflecting the stakes of defending the seat.

On October 24, 2026, Pappas met volunteers at a campaign field office in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, according to the photo caption accompanying The 19th News coverage.

By Election Day, November 3, the contest was a prominent Republican pickup opportunity. The Hill described Pappas and Sununu as competing for the seat Shaheen was leaving.

Pappas focused his campaign against Sununu on serving as a bulwark against the Trump administration, according to November 4 coverage from Top Stories. La Repubblica also described a campaign centered on LGBTQ+ rights, lower drug costs, small businesses and veterans.

On November 4, CBS Top Stories reported a projection that Pappas would defeat Sununu. The result kept the seat in Democratic hands and ended Sununu's bid to return to the Senate.

Pappas is the projected winner. The supplied coverage does not provide a vote margin or a final certified tally, so it does not establish the size of his victory.

His election also marks a national first: he will become the first openly gay man elected to the U.S. Senate, according to The 19th News. NYT Politics reported that his move to the upper chamber comes as LGBTQ+ rights have faced pushback in some states.