Chris Pappas Holds New Hampshire Senate Seat and Will Become First Openly Gay Man in Senate

Democratic Rep. Chris Pappas defeated Republican former Sen. John E. Sununu for New Hampshire’s Senate seat on Tuesday, according to projections reported by USA Today. Pappas will become the first openly gay man to serve in the U.S. Senate, USA Today reported.

The projection was reported at 8:17 p.m. ET, after polls had closed in New Hampshire. Pappas had won the state’s 1st Congressional District in past elections, and USA Today described the district as historically purple. National Republicans had put heavy resources into the race, and polls through the year had shown a single-digit contest.

A seat Democrats kept

The seat was open because Democratic Sen. Jeanne Shaheen retired. The result keeps the seat in Democratic hands as Democrats try to win a Senate majority, with results still coming in on Tuesday night.

The New Hampshire call came on a night when results were arriving from more than half the country, in races that will decide control of the House and the Senate. Polls closed at 8 p.m. ET in 20 additional states, including Maine, Michigan, Kansas and Texas, each of which has a Senate race on the ballot, USA Today reported.

USA Today described Sununu as coming from a popular political family in New Hampshire and said Pappas had faced a serious challenge from him. Pappas, it reported, had won his House district repeatedly despite its history of close contests.

Reporting based on coverage by USA Today.