With midterm elections seven months away, candidates for New Hampshire’s open U.S. Senate seat are staking out their positions on one of the state’s most pressing kitchen-table issues: child care.
Senator Jeanne Shaheen announced her retirement over a year ago. Now, a crowded field is competing to replace her. On the Republican side, former Senator John Sununu and former Massachusetts Senator Scott Brown are the leading contenders. Democrats Chris Pappas and Karishma Manzur are battling for their party’s nomination.
Shaheen leaves behind a long legacy on the issue. She served as a state senator before becoming governor in 1997 and entered the U.S. Senate in 2009. Throughout her career, she advocated for increased federal funding for early education. Most recently, she helped child care programs in the Monadnock region secure federal grants.
When asked what she wants in a successor, Shaheen kept it simple. She hopes the next senator will continue supporting child care and recognize how much the early childhood years shape a person’s future.
Pappas, who currently represents New Hampshire’s 1st Congressional District, is running on an affordability platform. He recently toured a Merrimack Valley Day Care facility in Concord and met with state lawmakers and care providers to discuss what the workforce needs from Washington.
He told the Bulletin that child care affordability is a “critical issue” and a key to building a more affordable economy. In his view, investing in child care isn’t just about families — it’s about growing the economic pie.
“We have a cost-of-living crisis, and we have to figure out how to make things less expensive,” he said. He framed child care as both a community value and an economic driver that benefits the entire state.
Sununu, the brother of former Governor Chris Sununu, holds an early lead in Republican polling according to St. Anselm College. His campaign has made affordability its central message since day one.
Campaign spokesperson Mike Schrimpf told the Bulletin that Sununu will work to lower child care costs along with all other costs for New Hampshire families. He also took a shot at Pappas, arguing the congressman has supported policies that raised the cost of living — including higher taxes.
Brown, who served as a U.S. senator from Massachusetts and later as ambassador to New Zealand during Trump’s first term, called the current child care situation “unsustainable.”
He shared his own experience struggling to find affordable care for his family. In his view, the best solutions come from local, state, and federal governments working together with individuals. He also criticized Pappas for what he described as a failure to support tax breaks for working families.
Manzur, a doctor who worked on treatments for epilepsy and depression, is challenging Pappas for the Democratic nomination. Her platform centers on lowering the cost of living and investing in workers through livable wages, strong unions, and fair labor practices.
On child care specifically, she went further than any other candidate. She supports expanding federal subsidies so that no family pays more than 7% of their income on care. She also called for increased federal investment in early childhood education and stronger partnerships with states to build out child care infrastructure.
Additionally, Manzur pledged to strengthen the child care tax credit. She framed the issue in urgent terms, saying “bold action” is needed so no family has to choose between paying for care and making ends meet.
State Representative Jared Sullivan, another Democratic candidate, did not respond to multiple requests for comment.
