Chris Pappas will be the first out gay man in the U.S. Senate

John Sununu, a Republican backed by President Donald Trump, according to projections by Decision Desk HQ. Pappas will be the first out gay man to serve in the upper chamber. This race, which had no incumbent, is one of a handful of competitive elections that will determine which party ultimately takes control of the Senate.

Pappas’ win protects a vulnerable seat for Democrats, who need to gain four seats to clinch a majority. Pappas’ win marks only the third time in history that an out LGBTQ+ person has been elected to the Senate. Tammy Baldwin of Wisconsin, who took office in 2013.

The second was former senator Kyrsten Sinema, a Democrat-turned independent from Arizona. Laphonza Butler, the country’s first Black lesbian senator, was not elected: California Gov. Gavin Newsom appointed her to the position in 2023 for a 14-month term.

Pappas’ identity as a gay man was not central to his campaign, but he didn’t shy away from sharing his life with voters, either. In his campaign announcement video, while promising voters that he can help get the country “back on track,” Pappas and his husband hold hands and share a loving look. Pappas previously represented New Hampshire’s 1st Congressional District for four terms, from 2019 until this year.

Before that, he served two terms in the state House of Representatives. Pappas is known as a moderate Democrat who takes a bipartisan approach to politics: While in Congress, he frequently broke with his party on House votes. But he has consistently earned top ratings from Reproductive Freedom for All, an abortion rights group, and AFL-CIO, the nation’s largest federation of unions.

As a co-chair for the Congressional Equality Caucus, which advocates for LGBTQ+ rights in Congress, Pappas has been a lead sponsor for major pro-LGBTQ+ bills. Pappas entered the race after Democratic Sen. Jeanne Shaheen did not seek reelection, leaving the seat open.