Chris Pappas

A four-term congressman from New Hampshire's 1st District, Pappas won the September 8 primary to succeed retiring Sen. Jeanne Shaheen. He faces former Sen. John E. Sununu in the state's first open Senate race since 2010.

On the ballot against John E. Sununu (R)

Why it matters: This is an open Democratic-held seat after Sen. Jeanne Shaheen's retirement, and Democrats must hold it to have a path to a Senate majority.

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The race at a glance

Race ratingLean DCook Political Report, Oct 20 source

Polling average (6 polls) Pappas 49.8% 43% Sununu 7% undecided or other Pappas +6.8Jun 30Oct 20Most recent poll from each pollster, Sep 24 to Oct 20. Checked 32 min ago. Every poll

Money raised (through Sep 30) Pappas$21,500,073 Sununu$5,334,886 $3,283,894 cash on hand. source

Every poll in this race

Pollster	Date	Sample	Pappas	Sununu	Margin
National Public Affairs	Oct 20	600 LV	50%	43%	D +7
Saint Anselm College	Oct 6	1,042 LV	51%	44%	D +7
YouGov	Oct 6	1,519 LV	51%	43%	D +8
Trafalgar Group	Sep 27	1,082 LV · Margin of error ±2.9%	47%	41%	D +6
Univ. of New Hampshire	Sep 24	1,418 LV · Margin of error ±2.6%	50%	42%	D +8
Siena College	Sep 24	613 LV · Margin of error ±4.9%	50%	45%	D +5
InsiderAdvantage	Sep 18	1,200 LV · Margin of error ±2.8%	48%	40%	D +8
co/efficient	Sep 14	958 LV · Margin of error ±3.2%	46%	46%	Tied
Univ. of New Hampshire	Aug 26	1,878 LV · Margin of error ±2.3%	43%	45%	R +2
Saint Anselm College	Aug 20	1,411 LV · Margin of error ±2.6%	48%	41%	D +7
Univ. of New Hampshire	Jun 30	2,232 LV · Margin of error ±2.1%	47%	44%	D +3
Saint Anselm College	Jun 30	1,614 RV · Margin of error ±2.4%	47%	41%	D +6

LV = likely voters, RV = registered voters. Polls listed by 270toWin, which lists 21 polls in this race; the newest 12 are shown. Each pollster name links to its own release.

Chris's TV ads

Campaign adSenate, NH

Chris Pappas

“No VIPs”

Pappas +6.8From the campaign's own channel · 671K views

Posted by the campaign on YouTube. Plays from YouTube when you press play.

In Chris's own words

**Chris Pappas**, at a Social Security event in Manchester, where he was endorsed by the National Committee to Preserve Social Security and Medicare, Aug 3 source

Where Chris stands

Social Security: He says he will never vote to cut benefits or raise the retirement age, and opposes privatizing Social Security. source
Medicare and drug prices: He helped pass the law letting Medicare negotiate drug prices and capping insulin at $35 for people on Medicare, and opposes the Medicare cuts threatened by the 2025 Republican budget law. source
Health insurance costs: He is working to restore the enhanced Affordable Care Act premium tax credits. source
Energy costs: He wants to cut energy taxes, protect heating help like LIHEAP, and suspend the federal gas tax. source
Congressional stock trading: He has called for a ban on stock trading by members of Congress and forced a House floor vote on it. source

The record

U.S. representative for New Hampshire's 1st District, first elected in 2018
Won the Democratic primary with about 65% of the vote
First run for the U.S. Senate

ConfidentialThe GOP File

The file on John E. Sununu

When he last served in the Senate, Sununu proposed partially privatizing Social Security, though he has not emphasized the idea in this campaign. source
Sununu represented New Hampshire in the Senate from 2003 to 2009 and lost re-election in 2008 to Jeanne Shaheen; he says he will focus on jobs, the national debt, cost of living, Medicare and Social Security. source

Endorsed by

National Committee to Preserve Social Security and Medicare AFL-CIO NEA-New Hampshire Professional Fire Fighters Planned Parenthood Action Fund

Chris Pappas. Photo: United States Congress, Public domain

Profile sources: 1, 2

Race data checked Wednesday, October 21, 2026. Quotes on this page were matched word for word against their sources.