Manchester, NH – November 4: U.S. Congressman Chris Pappas at a campaign event at the Manchester field office of the New Hampshire Democratic coordinated campaign. (Photo by Suzanne Kreiter/The Boston Globe via Getty Images)
New Hampshire Congressman Chris Pappas announced Thursday morning that he will run for the U.S. Senate seat being vacated by Jeanne Shaheen.
“I’m running for Senate because our economy, our democracy, and our way of life are on the line, and New Hampshire deserves a Senator who is grounded in the people, places, and values of this state,” Pappas said in a statement. “Granite Staters know my record of taking on the big fights and looking out for them – pushing tax cuts for working families and small businesses, taking on predatory companies and corporate polluters, and standing up to Big Pharma to lower drug costs. Like Senator Shaheen, I’ll always put New Hampshire first. You can count on me to lead the charge to confront this administration, self-dealing billionaires, and extreme politicians who threaten our future and our ability to get things done for New Hampshire.”
WATCH ANYTIME FOR FREE
 |
Stream NBC10 Boston news for free, 24/7, wherever you are. |
Watch his full campaign announcement video below:
Get updates on what's happening in Boston to your inbox. Sign up for our News Headlines newsletter.
Pappas will kick off his campaign on Thursday night in Manchester before hitting the road this weekend with events across the state. He recently completed a 10-county listening tour as he considered a run for Senate.
The 44-year-old Manchester Democrat was reelected to his 1st District Congressional seat last year, defeating Republican former state Sen. Russell Prescott to win a fourth term.
Pappas, who considers himself a pragmatic voice in Washington, touted his support from women, veterans and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce during the campaign. He made abortion rights a top issue, calling Prescott “radically out of step” and accusing him of distrusting women to make health care decisions.
He is the first openly gay man to represent New Hampshire in Congress and would be the first openly gay man in the Senate if he wins.
Shaheen, 78, announced last month that she would not seek reelection next year. She has been a political force in New Hampshire for decades and climbed through the ranks of Senate leadership to serve as the top Democrat on the powerful Senate Foreign Relations Committee. She likely would have been easily reelected had she sought another term.
On the Republican side, former Gov. Chris Sununu, who left office in January, is openly considering running. Sununu told the Washington Times last month that Washington Republicans have encouraged him to run and he has “not ruled it out completely.”
Massachusetts Sen. Scott Brown, who served as ambassador to New Zealand in the first Trump administration, was considering a New Hampshire Senate bid even before Shaheen’s announcement. Brown challenged Shaheen unsuccessfully in 2014.
New Hampshire Republican Party Chairman Jim MacEachern issued a statement responding to Pappas' announcement.
“Chris Pappas is a career politician who has spent the last twenty-five years raising taxes and increasing the cost of living for Granite Staters," he said. "Pappas has never seen a tax he didn’t like, and he thinks anyone opposed to higher taxes is ‘brainwashed.' Even worse, he’s voted against common-sense tax breaks for all Granite Staters. Chris Pappas wants to tax his way into a promotion, and Granite Staters won’t buy it.”
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
