NH Governor Will Not Run For U.S. Senate; Will Seek 4th Term

CONCORD, NH — The waiting game is over. Gov. Chris Sununu (R-NH) has made a decision on a U.S. Senate run in 2022. He will not run against U.S. Sen. Maggie Hassan (D-NH), a first-term Senator.

Sununu, at a press conference on Tuesday at the Bridge's House in Concord, a ceremonial governor's mansion, said, after speaking to numerous people, he has decided to stay in the job he loves — leading the state of New Hampshire.

The governor said there was much work still to be done in the state and the importance of him staying in his current position while also working to push back, from New Hampshire, on Washington’s attempt to overregulate the state’s communities. He pointed to the recent IRS regulation proposal and the vaccine mandate on employers.

Sununu said raising money and winning were not considerations; he believed he would win and be “the 51st vote to stop Chuck Schumer,” the Democratic leader in the Senate.

“Countless voices across the country” reached out to him to run with the “vast majority urging me to run for Senate.” Sununu said, “I do appreciate everyone who has reached out.”

But, as governor, Sununu, it was “a 24-7 job” and he would be “most impactful to the key decisions” in the lives of New Hampshire residents, his most important job as a public servant.

Congress was, he said, frankly, “completely unconnected” and there was a need for a rational approach. But, “my responsibility is to the citizens of New Hampshire, delivering wins for them.” There were, Sununu said, a lot of good potential Senate candidates for 2022 who will be able to beat Hassan.

“It’s not just Chris Sununu who can win this seat,” he said of the 2022 Senate race. "Any good candidate can win any race. You have to be real."

Sununu commended his administration, saying he had “a great team of commissioners,” as well as an executive team and staff delivering services and “putting the individual, not the government, first.” He added, “You only get one life to live.”

When asked if he would rule out a run for president, he said he was not ruling out anything or ruling out going to Washington some day. He said, "I'm an engineer ... I keep everything on the table."

Sununu was asked about abortion including an onslaught of ads attacking him for signing a budget with a late-term abortion ban provision in it. He countered though that his poll numbers have increased despite $10 million of attack ads.

The New Hampshire Patch network is updating this post in real-time.

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