# Chris Pappas (American politician)

Christopher Charles Pappas (/ˈpæpəs/ PAPP-əss; born June 4, 1980) is an American politician who has served as the U.S. representative from New Hampshire's 1st congressional district since 2019. A member of the Democratic Party, Pappas previously served on the New Hampshire Executive Council from 2013 to 2019.
Pappas is the first openly gay man to represent New Hampshire in Congress. His district covers much of the southern and eastern parts of New Hampshire and includes the state's largest city, Manchester, as well as the Seacoast and the Lakes Region.

## Early life and education

Pappas was born in Manchester, New Hampshire, the son of Dawn and Arthur Pappas. His paternal great-grandfather, also named Arthur Pappas, arrived in New Hampshire as a new American citizen in the early 20th century, having recently emigrated from Greece. In 1917 Arthur Pappas and his cousin Louis Canota founded an ice cream shop in Manchester. By 1919 they had expanded the business into a restaurant, now known as the Puritan Backroom, and in 1949 they added a function room. In 1974 Charlie Pappas, grandfather of Chris Pappas and co-owner of the Puritan at the time, invented the chicken tender. The business remains family-owned, and as of 2020 Chris Pappas was one of the owners.
Pappas graduated from Manchester Central High School in 1998. He then attended Harvard University, earning his Bachelor of Arts in government in 2002.

## Early political career

In 1996, as a high school student, Pappas met Jeanne Shaheen, then a state senator and the Democratic nominee for governor. He signed on as a volunteer for Shaheen's campaign, marking his first foray into politics.
Pappas returned to Manchester after graduating college and was elected to the New Hampshire House of Representatives in 2002. He served two terms before being elected treasurer of Hillsborough County. He was defeated by Bob Burns for a third term as county treasurer in 2010.
In 2012, Pappas was elected to the New Hampshire Executive Council from the 4th district, defeating Burns. He was reelected in 2014 and 2016.

## U.S. House of Representatives
### Elections
#### 2018

For years, Pappas was floated as a potential candidate for the U.S. House of Representatives, the United States Senate, and governor of New Hampshire. After U.S. Representative Carol Shea-Porter announced that she would not seek reelection in 2018, Pappas announced his candidacy for her seat in New Hampshire's 1st congressional district. Pappas defeated ten other candidates for the Democratic nomination, including former Assistant to the Secretary of Defense for Public Affairs Maura Sullivan and Bernie Sanders's son Levi Sanders, with 42.2% of the vote.
Pappas defeated Republican Eddie Edwards, a former police chief and member of the New Hampshire State Division of Liquor Enforcement, in the general election, with 53.6% of the vote. He won every county except Belknap County.

#### 2020

Pappas ran for reelection to a second term and was unopposed in the Democratic primary. He defeated Republican Matt Mowers, a former New Hampshire Republican Party executive director and former U.S. State Department staffer, in the general election, receiving 51.32% of the vote.

#### 2022

Pappas was reelected in 2022. He ran unopposed in the Democratic primary and defeated future Trump administration official Karoline Leavitt with 54% of the vote.

#### 2024

Pappas ran for a fourth term in 2024. He defeated Kevin Rondeau for the Democratic nomination, winning 95.2% of the vote. He faced Republican Russell Prescott, a former state senator with whom Pappas served on the New Hampshire Executive Council, in the general election. He was reelected with 52.5% of the vote.

### Committee assignments

* Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure
** Subcommittee on Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation
** Subcommittee on Highways and Transit
** Subcommittee on Water Resources and Environment
* Committee on Veterans' Affairs
** Subcommittee on Economic Opportunity
** Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations (Chair)
* Committee on Small Business

### Caucus memberships

* Congressional LGBT Equality Caucus (co-chair)
* New Democrat Coalition
* Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission
* House Pro-Choice Caucus
* Rare Disease Caucus

## Political positions

Pappas was one of six House Democrats to vote against the Marijuana Opportunity Reinvestment and Expungement (MORE) Act to legalize cannabis at the federal level in 2020. Pappas said he supports removing cannabis from the Controlled Substances Act but that he had concerns with other provisions of the bill and felt that it was being rushed through.
In August 2022, Pappas criticized President Biden's plan to cancel $10,000 in federal student debt for those making less than $125,000 and up to $20,000 for Pell Grant recipients, calling it "no way to make policy", and saying it did little to address the root cause of increasing costs of higher education.
On February 1, 2023, Pappas was among twelve Democrats to vote for a resolution to end the COVID-19 national emergency.
In 2025, Pappas was one of 46 House Democrats who joined all Republicans to vote for the Laken Riley Act.

### Syria

In 2023, Pappas voted against H. Con. Res. 21 which directed President Joe Biden to remove U.S. troops from Syria within 180 days.

### Israeli–Palestinian conflict

On November 7, 2023, Pappas voted in favor of H.Res 845 to censure Representative Rashida Tlaib. The censure resolution accused Tlaib of "promoting false narratives regarding the October 7, 2023, Hamas attack on Israel and for calling for the destruction of the state of Israel." The resolution stated that the phrase "from the river to the sea" is "a genocidal call to violence to destroy the state of Israel and its people to replace it with a Palestinian state extending from the Jordan River to the Mediterranean Sea". 212 Republicans and 22 Democrats voted for the resolution, and 188 representatives (184 Democrats and four Republicans) against it.

## 2026 U.S. Senate election

In March 2025, after incumbent Democratic U.S. Senator Jeanne Shaheen announced that she would not run for re-election in 2026, it was reported that Pappas was "definitely considering" running for the seat.

## Personal life

Pappas is openly gay. He married Vann Bentley in February 2023. They live in Manchester, New Hampshire. Pappas is an Orthodox Christian and is affiliated with the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America.
Pappas co-owns the Puritan Backroom restaurant in Manchester. The Puritan Backroom is well-known in New Hampshire as a frequent stop for presidential candidates during the New Hampshire primary.
Pappas appeared on Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? on October 10, 2011, and won $17,500.

## Electoral history

2018 New Hampshire's 1st congressional district Democratic primary election :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Democratic | Chris Pappas | 26,875 | 42.2 |
| | Democratic | Maura Sullivan | 19,313 | 30.4 |
| | Democratic | Mindi Messmer | 6,142 | 9.7 |
| | Democratic | Naomi Andrews | 4,508 | 7.1 |
| | Democratic | Lincoln Soldati | 1,982 | 3.1 |
| | Democratic | Deaglan McEachern | 1,709 | 2.7 |
| | Democratic | Levi Sanders | 1,141 | 1.8 |
| | Democratic | Mark MacKenzie | 746 | 1.2 |
| | Democratic | Terence O'Rourke | 656 | 1.0 |
| | Democratic | Paul Cardinal | 317 | 0.5 |
| | Democratic | William Martin | 230 | 0.4 |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 63,619 | 100.0 |
2018 New Hampshire's 1st congressional district election :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Democratic | Chris Pappas | 155,884 | 53.6 |
| | Republican | Eddie Edwards | 130,996 | 45.0 |
| | Libertarian | Dan Belforti | 4,048 | 1.4 |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 290,928 | 100.0 |
| | Democratic hold | Democratic hold | Democratic hold | Democratic hold |
2020 New Hampshire's 1st congressional district election :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Democratic | Chris Pappas | 205,606 | 51.3 |
| | Republican | Matt Mowers | 185,159 | 46.2 |
| | Libertarian | Zachary Dumont | 9,747 | 2.4 |
| | Write-in | Write-in | 83 | <0.1 |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 400,595 | 100.0 |
| | Democratic hold | Democratic hold | Democratic hold | Democratic hold |
2022 New Hampshire's 1st congressional district election :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Democratic | Chris Pappas | 167,391 | 54.0 |
| | Republican | Karoline Leavitt | 142,229 | 45.9 |
| | Write-in | Write-in | 342 | 0.1 |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 309,962 | 100.0 |
| | Democratic hold | Democratic hold | Democratic hold | Democratic hold |
2024 New Hampshire's 1st congressional district Democratic primary election :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Democratic | Chris Pappas | 54,847 | 95.2 |
| | Democratic | Kevin Rondeau | 2,775 | 4.8 |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 57,622 | 100.0 |
2024 New Hampshire's 1st congressional district election :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Democratic | Chris Pappas (incumbent) | 218,577 | 54.00 |
| | Republican | Russell Prescott | 185,936 | 45.93 |
| | Write-in | Write-in | 295 | 0.07 |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 404,808 | 100.00 |
| | Democratic hold | Democratic hold | Democratic hold | Democratic hold |