New Hampshire primary results: The Senate races to watch tonight
New Hampshire voters are choosing Senate nominees for an open seat, with most polls closing at 7 p.m. ET.
By Deshawn Carter · Sports Writer
3 min read
New Hampshire primary results will begin to take shape after most polls close at 7 p.m. Eastern on Sept. 8, with the open U.S. Senate seat topping the night’s watch list. About 20 municipalities will keep voting until 8 p.m., so early returns may not reflect the full statewide picture.
The primaries will select nominees to succeed retiring Democratic Sen. Jeanne Shaheen. NBC News reports that the contest has become a test for both President Donald Trump’s influence in the Republican Party and progressive Democrats’ ability to challenge a party front-runner.
What should voters watch in New Hampshire’s primary tonight?
The Democratic Senate primary pits Rep. Chris Pappas against scientist Karishma Manzur. NBC News describes Pappas, who first won his House seat in 2018, as the front-runner for the nomination.
Manzur, a member of the Democratic Socialists of America, backs policies including Medicare for All, according to NBC. Her campaign has criticized Pappas over his support and funding for Israel. That is Manzur’s stated position, not an independently established finding.
The Democratic result will show whether Pappas can quickly move into a general-election campaign or whether Manzur’s challenge can produce a late primary upset.
On the Republican side, multiple candidates are running, but NBC News identifies former Sens. John Sununu and Scott Brown as the central matchup. Sununu represented New Hampshire in the Senate from 2003 to 2008 and has endorsements from Trump, Senate Majority Leader John Thune and the National Republican Senatorial Committee, NBC reports.
Brown previously held a Massachusetts Senate seat, ran for the New Hampshire Senate in 2014 and served as Trump’s ambassador to New Zealand and Samoa during Trump’s first term, according to NBC.
Why is New Hampshire’s Senate primary important?
Shaheen’s retirement leaves an open seat in a state where both parties see a possible path. Trump lost New Hampshire by 3 percentage points in 2024, NBC reports, giving Republicans reason to target the race even though the GOP has not won a Senate contest in the state since 2010.
Republican Kelly Ayotte’s governorship is another sign that statewide races can be competitive. The Senate nominees chosen Tuesday will set the field for November’s contest.
There is also a competitive nomination fight in the state’s 1st Congressional District, according to Decision Desk HQ. The available reporting does not provide enough candidate detail to assess that race further.
When do polls close in New Hampshire?
- Most of New Hampshire’s more than 200 municipalities close their polls at 7 p.m. Eastern, according to Decision Desk HQ.
- About 20 municipalities remain open until 8 p.m. Eastern.
- New Hampshire Public Radio says every polling place must be open at least from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m., though local voting hours vary.
That staggered schedule means the first figures after 7 p.m. will be incomplete. NBC News scheduled election-night analysis beginning at 7 p.m. Eastern, while voters in later-closing towns are still casting ballots.
This story draws on original reporting from NBC News.