New Hampshire voters have elected Democratic Rep. Chris Pappas to the U.S. Senate, making him the first openly gay man chosen for the chamber. The Associated Press called the race for Pappas after he defeated former Republican Sen. John E. Sununu for the open seat held by retiring Sen. Jeanne Shaheen.
Pappas will not be the Senate’s first openly LGBTQ+ member. Wisconsin voters gave Tammy Baldwin that distinction in 2012, when she became the first openly gay person elected to the Senate. Pappas’s win marks a different first: no openly gay man had previously been elected to the chamber.
From New Hampshire’s 1st District to the Senate
Pappas, 46, has represented New Hampshire’s 1st Congressional District since 2019. His election to the House made him the state’s first openly gay member of Congress. Before Washington, he served in the New Hampshire House, as Hillsborough County treasurer, and on the state Executive Council. He also worked in his family’s Manchester restaurant, which opened in 1917.
The Senate race put two familiar New Hampshire political names against each other. Sununu previously served one term in the Senate before losing the seat to Shaheen in 2008. Pappas framed Tuesday’s result as a “victory for Team New Hampshire over the broken status quo,” according to the AP.
An LGBTQ+ advocate moves to the Senate
In the House, Pappas has served as a co-chair of the Congressional Equality Caucus. His record includes work on the Equality Act and the Respect for Marriage Act, as well as bills addressing the use of LGBTQ+ panic defenses in federal court and benefits for LGBTQ+ veterans discharged under discriminatory policies.
His arrival will put two openly gay members in the Senate alongside Baldwin, who won a third term in 2024. It also moves an established House voice on LGBTQ+ policy into a chamber where every vote can decide whether legislation advances, nominations are confirmed, and federal judges take the bench.
Pappas is set to succeed Shaheen when the new Congress begins in January. New Hampshire’s posted election tallies remain subject to amendments from local clerks until the state completes its certification process.
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