Biography
John Sununu is the Republican nominee for the open New Hampshire U.S. Senate seat. A mechanical engineer and MBA who worked in engineering, consulting and manufacturing, he served in the U.S. House from 1997 to 2003 and in the Senate from 2003 to 2009, losing his 2008 re-election bid to Jeanne Shaheen. He launched this campaign in October 2025 for the seat Shaheen is vacating.[1][3][4]
Sununu was born in Boston, Massachusetts, on September 10, 1964, one of eight siblings. He is the son of former New Hampshire Gov. John H. Sununu (R) and the brother of former Gov. Chris Sununu (R).[1][5] He received bachelor's and master's degrees in mechanical engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1986 and 1987 and an MBA from Harvard Graduate School of Business in 1991. His career before Congress included engineering, consulting and manufacturing work and running operations at an electronics company.[1][5]
Sununu won the open 1st Congressional District seat in 1996 by defeating Democrat Joe Keefe, and he was re-elected in 1998 and 2000. He represented the district in the U.S. House from 1997 to 2003, serving three terms and sitting on the Appropriations and Budget committees.[1][5] In 2002 he defeated incumbent Sen. Bob Smith in the Republican primary and then-Gov. Shaheen in the general election. He served in the Senate from 2003 to 2009, and Shaheen defeated him in a 2008 rematch.[1][4][5] After leaving Congress he was a faculty member at St. Anselm College and a director at Boston Scientific. He joined the law firm Akin Gump as an adjunct senior policy advisor in 2010 and was named to Lloyd's of London's governing council in 2019.[1][5]
Sununu launched his 2026 campaign in October 2025, and President Trump endorsed him. He won the September 8, 2026, Republican primary with 68.4% of the vote over Scott Brown (26.4%).[1][2][3] His campaign website says he will oppose all middle-class tax hikes, focus on reducing inflation and the cost of housing, health care and energy, and push for term limits for Congress.[1]
- 1.John Sununu · Ballotpedia Reference
- 2.United States Senate election in New Hampshire, 2026 · Ballotpedia Reference
- 3.John E. Sununu launches campaign for Senate in New Hampshire · The Boston Globe · 2025-10-22 News report
- 4.Former GOP Sen. John E. Sununu, on a potential 2026 Senate run in New Hampshire, says "I know I can win." · Fox News News report
- 5.John E. Sununu · Wikipedia · 2026-10-21 Reference
Researched from the cited sources on 2026-10-21.
