Updated

Updated · Fox News · Sep 8

New Hampshire Voters Pick Senate Nominees for Open Seat as Pappas, Sununu Face Primary Tests

Updated

Updated · Fox News · Sep 8

New Hampshire Voters Pick Senate Nominees for Open Seat as Pappas, Sununu Face Primary Tests

Q: Will the medical scientist's unexpected polling surge completely upend the established frontrunner in the final hours of the primary?

No. Karishma Manzur’s late surge has made the Democratic Senate primary more competitive, but the available evidence still points to Chris Pappas remaining the favorite in the closing hours. Recent polling shows genuine movement. A late University of New Hampshire poll put Pappas ahead 47% to 34%, with 18% undecided, a much narrower margin than earlier surveys. Other reporting also described Manzur gaining traction with younger and more progressive voters, and analysts said Pappas “should be worried.” That matters because New Hampshire has a history of late shifts and surprise outcomes. Still, a surge is not the same as an upset. Pappas retains major structural advantages: far stronger name recognition, broad backing from party leaders, and a huge financial edge. Reports show he raised more than $15 million, compared with roughly $415,000 for Manzur. Other polls have also shown him with a larger lead than the UNH survey, suggesting the race may be tightening without actually flipping. The key uncertainty is the large bloc of undecided voters. If Manzur were to break overwhelmingly with them and turnout among her newer supporters exceeded expectations, the race could become much closer than once expected. But based on the full picture of polling, money, endorsements and organizational strength, a complete last-minute overthrow of the frontrunner would still be an upset rather than the most likely outcome.

3 articles · Updated · Fox News · Sep 8

New Hampshire voters headed to the polls Tuesday to choose Democratic and Republican Senate nominees for the seat Sen. Jeanne Shaheen is vacating after 16 years of GOP losses in the state.
Chris Pappas entered as the Democratic frontrunner, but Karishma Manzur gained late momentum by channeling the party’s anti-establishment left with calls for $20 minimum wage, universal healthcare and ending U.S. military aid to Israel.
John E. Sununu and Scott Brown fought for the GOP nomination in a contest shaped by Donald Trump’s February endorsement of Sununu, even as Brown argued he held stronger MAGA support.
The open seat is one of Republicans’ top pickup targets as they try to protect a slim Senate majority, making New Hampshire’s primary a potential hinge for the midterm map.