New Hampshire Congressman Chris Pappas announces he will run for U.S. Senate
U.S. Rep Chris Pappas, of New Hampshire, revealed Thursday morning that he is running for U.S. Senate next year.
The four-term congressman announced his campaign with a social media video, which highlighted his Manchester roots, business background and record on Capitol Hill.
I think people, regardless of their politics, have a sense that the system is not working, that there are special interests and big corporations that have outsized influence in our political system," Pappas said.
The video shows scenes from the Congressman's recent 10-county tour and includes Pappas invoking Department of Government Efficiency leader Elon Musk, who increasingly appears to be a target for Democrats looking to channel the frustrations of their political base.
"I do get angry because when you're talking about public service, you should be focused on how you can help people, how you can make people's lives better," he said.
WMTW's sister station in Manchester, WMUR, was the first to report Pappas was running for Senate.
Pappas' name was among the first to emerge as a possible candidate after Sen. Jeanne Shaheen announced she would not seek re-election in 2026.
While he is viewed as a top contender for Democrats desperate to hold this seat in the mid-term elections, first-term New Hampshire Congresswoman Maggie Goodlander, who built a strong national support base in her successful campaign last year, has also said she is considering a run.
On the Republican side, potential candidates include former New Hampshire Gov. Chris Sununu and former Ambassador to New Zealand Scott Brown, both of whom have said they are weighing runs.
Pappas is the first major candidate to enter the race. Last weekend, he made headlines for drawing a massive overflow crowd to a town hall event in Exeter.
His Senate campaign is just the latest step in a political career that began in the New Hampshire House, where he served two terms from 2002 to 2006 and three terms on the New Hampshire Executive Council from 2013 to 2019. His lone electoral defeat came in a race for Hillsborough County treasurer in 2010.
When Pappas won the 1st Congressional District seat in 2018 at 38 years old, taking over for Rep. Carol Shea-Porter, Shaheen poked fun at the age and gender gap opening up within the congressional delegation by referring to the group as the "Mamas and the Pappas." Now, Pappas is attempting to move up in a year that will see another reconfiguration of the delegation, one that could be quite extensive depending on who runs and who wins.
