The Story:
Chris Sununu, who is now serving his third term as the Governor of New Hampshire, announced last week that he will not run for Senate in 2022. This may have disappointed many of his fellow Republicans, because he would have been a strong challenger to Maggie Hassan (D), who is due to run for re-election for one of New Hampshire’s Senate seats next year.
Background:
Hassan only squeaked into her office by defeating Kelly Ayotte, in 2016, by just 0.1% of the vote, or 1,000 votes. Newt Gingrich, a prominent Republican activist who was once Speaker of the House (1995 – 1999), has said that he believes any “competent candidate” taking Hassan on could defeat her. But Gingrich also said he believed Sununu is the candidate who could make it a “very. very easy race.”
The Thing to Know:Â
The U.S. Senate in now split 50 to 50, between Republicans and Democrats. The latter count as the Majority Party because the Vice President casts a tie-breaking vote, and she of course is a Democrat, Kamala Harris. The Republican Party leadership would love to take back control of the Senate. It will continue its efforts to topple Democratic senators wherever they are vulnerable, to that end, but it will not have Sununu’s assistance in that effort.
