25-04-2025
Sullivan splashes endorsements for 1st District seat as others mull run
Hoping to send an early warning message to other potential Democratic primary opponents, First Congressional District candidate Maura Sullivan of Portsmouth announced more than 30 endorsements from elected officials, small business owners and veterans.
Among those on the list are former House Speaker Steve Shurtleff of Penacook, former party chairman and U.S. ambassador to Belize George Bruno, State Sen. and Ward 3 Alderman Pat Long, D-Manchester, and former Executive Councilor and Army Reserve Ambassador Jim Normand.
A Merrimack County commissioner, Shurtleff lives in the Second Congressional District.
The group also includes five school board members and two aldermen from Manchester, the largest city in the district and Pappas' hometown.
Earlier this month, Sullivan became the first candidate in either major party to declare her candidacy for the seat that four-term U.S. Rep. Chris Pappas, D-N.H., will vacate to run for the U.S. Senate.
In 2018, Sullivan finished second to Pappas in his first primary for this seat in a race that attracted 11 candidates.
Sullivan outperformed expectations in that race but had to overcome criticism that she had only lived in the state for a few months before the campaign and done little grass roots work in New Hampshire in contrast to Pappas who had been an elected official and campaign volunteer for two decades.
Since her loss seven years ago, Sullivan has gotten intensely involved in party politics and last month got elected as one of the state's two vice chairmen of the New Hampshire Democratic Party along with Sen. Donovan Fenton, D-Keene.
She also raised more than $400,000 in the week after she announced for the seat and has won the support of VoteVets, a Democratic political action committee that spent significant resources in support of Navy Reserves veteran Maggie Goodlander of Nashua who won the Second Congressional District seat last November.
Sullivan is a combat Marine Corps veteran who rose to the rank of captain and had several foreign deployments including one to Iraq.
After her service, Sullivan worked in the federal Departments of Veterans Affairs and Defense during the Obama administration.
Her endorsement list also includes five school board members and two aldermen from Manchester, the largest city in the district and Pappas' hometown.
This open seat is sure to attract other Democratic hopefuls.
Potential tough race with Stefany Shaheen looms
Stefany Shaheen, a former Portsmouth city councilor and police commissioner, recently confirmed she's considering her own campaign.
She's the eldest daughter of U.S. Sen. Jeanne Shaheen who will retire in 2026 after five decades of serving in elective office and working on campaigns.
Chris Bright, a Derry businessman who finished fourth in the 2024 Republican primary for this seat, is expected to run again.
Some activists are encouraging the second and third place finishers in that primary, Greenland business owner Hollie Noveletsky and Manchester Aldermanic President Joe Kelly Levasseur, to run.
Other Democrats who are on this latest list to endorse Sullivan include:
● State Rep. Luz Bay of Dover;
● Rep. Charlie St. Clair of Laconia, executive director of Laconia Bike Week;
● Rep. David Meuse of Portsmouth;
● Ex-Rep. Kate Miller of Laconia;
● Ex-Rep. Gerri Cannon of Somersworth;
● Ward 1 Manchester School Board member Julie Turner;
● Ward 2 Manchester School Board Sean Parr;
● Ward 7 Manchester School Board Chris Potter;
● Ward 8 Manchester School Board Jessica Spillers;
● Ward 11 Manchester School Board Liz O'Neil;
● Ward 2 Manchester Alderman Dan Goonan;
● City Councilor Eric Hoffman of Laconia;
● City Councilor Tony Felch of Laconia;
● Town Councilor Mackenzie Murphy of Merrimack;
● Retired Lieut. Col. Andy Corrow of Durham;
● N.H. AFL-CIO Executive Council member John MacNeil of Bedford;
● Moms Demand Action activist Robin Skudlarek of Londonderry;
● Belknap County Democratic Chair Johnna Davis of Gilford;
● Rockingham County Democrats Secretary Trish Tidd of Kingston;
● Carroll County Dems Vice Chair Tom Randell of Moultonborough;
● Former town chair George Hamblen of Plaistow;
● Town Chair Reva Tankle of Gilford;
● Town Chair Carrie Duran of Wolfeboro;
● USMC veteran Bill Kingston of New Castle;
● Navy veteran and businessman Gray Chynoweth of Manchester;
● Holly Henshaw, Navy Veteran and Community Leader, Dover and,
● Katelyn and Michael Wilson, activists from Newfields.
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