Democrats score major Senate victory as Pappas defeats Trump-backed Republican in key battleground
The Fox News Decision Desk projects that Democratic Rep. Chris Pappas of New Hampshire will defeat former Republican Sen. John E. Sununu in a competitive and expensive swing state race.With...
By Fox News · Fox News
The Fox News Decision Desk projects that Democratic Rep. Chris Pappas of New Hampshire will defeat former Republican Sen. John E. Sununu in a competitive and expensive swing state race. With 19.18% of the votes reported, Papas captured 60.6% compared to Sununu receiving 37.61% of the votes, according to Fox News Decision Desk. He will succeed retiring longtime Democratic Sen. Jeanne Shaheen. The victory by Pappas, a four-term congressman, is a boost for his party as the race was viewed as a must-hold for the Democrats as they try to win back the Senate majority from the GOP in the midterm elections . Sununu, who was endorsed by President Donald Trump but kept his distance from the president, was aiming to return to the U.S. Senate after 18 years away. Sununu repeatedly argued that Pappas had "been in Washington for 8 years and hasn't delivered for New Hampshire." "He has attempted very little in Congress. He's accomplished even less," Sununu told Fox News Digital recently. And he charged that Pappas would be "a rubber stamp for the far left." DEMOCRACY 2026: STAY UP TO DATE WITH THE FOX NEWS ELECTION HUB But Pappas, noting that he's "been reelected three times in one of the toughest congressional districts in the country," told Fox News Digital "I work with people across the aisle, and I've been rated as one of the most bipartisan Democrats in the House." "I've worked across the aisle on fentanyl scheduling to make sure that fentanyl analogs are Schedule One and that we're able to stay ahead of the cartels and the drugs that they're pushing into this country. I challenged Joe Biden on the border." Pappas, a co-owner of the famed Puritan Backroom restaurant, which has been a family run business for over a century and is known for its chicken tenders and as a must-stop in Manchester for politicians, was elected to New Hampshire 's five-member Executive Council before winning a seat in Congress. SIGN UP TO GE…