Seeks To Regain Senate Seat: John Sununu Campaigns In Lancaster For U.S. Senate

The Colebrook Chronicle - 1/23/26

On Tuesday, Jan. 20, a town hall meeting with U.S. Senate GOP candidate John E. Sununu was held at the John W. Weeks VFW Post 3041 in Lancaster. The focus of the day’s event was on veteran-related topics and issues. Upon arriving, Sununu made a point to meet with every person in attendance, speaking to and listening to them one-on-one. He addressed the gathering with a brief talk on his viewpoints, and spent time taking questions after, joined in some of his responses by District 1 Executive Councilor Joe Kenney, who was also in attendance.

The Sununu name is familiar to anyone in the realm of New Hampshire politics, with John being the brother of former N.H. Governor Chris Sununu and son of former N.H. Governor and White House Chief of Staff John H. Sununu. John E. served as a member of the House of Representatives from 1997 to 2003, and the U.S. Senate from 2003 to 2009.

Following the event, Sununu reflected on the meeting in a conversation with the Chronicle. “It’s an opportunity to listen, get perspective on veterans in the community,” he said. “Obviously, we have a great veterans facility in Manchester, but when you’re north of the notches, it doesn’t always make sense. It’s not always as convenient as it should be. So community-based health has to be part of the solution as well.” He added, addressing some of the questions brought up from the crowd, “Today, we’ve got opportunities, telehealth, a greater need for mental health services, these are the things I can be focused on as a U.S. senator, because they’re so important to the 85,000 veterans we have here in New Hampshire.”

A frequent question asked of candidates when they come north of the notches is how they’ll bring representation for the northern half of the state back to Concord, and we asked Sununu what this would look like for him. “There’s no question Lancaster, Coos County, Gorham, Berlin-they have their unique needs. This is a fairly rural part of the state, so support for rural hospitals and support for community-based care for our veterans are all extremely important. Transportation becomes really important. If you don’t spend the time here, if you don’t listen, you’re not going to make the right choices.”

Sununu said that he feels his background largely in the private sector, is an asset. “My background is engineering and manufacturing,” he told the Chronicle. “I worked in the private sector before getting elected to Congress. For the last 15 years, I’ve gone back to that technology, manufacturing, engineering, and the firms and companies that I’ve worked for. But, I see this race as incredibly important because we need somebody in Washington that will stand up for New Hampshire every single day, someone who understands New Hampshire, understands our veterans, and will be an effective advocate with this White House and with this administration.”

While the day’s focus was on veterans, Sununu said that he also sees affordability as a focus of his campaign since his entrance into the race three months ago. He broke it down into three aspects, explaining, “Healthcare affordability-it means cutting the red tape for our doctors and nurses, providing health savings accounts for everyone who wants one, and making sure providers tell us what things really cost. These are things that will drive competition and actually reduce prices. Energy affordability for New Hampshire - get rid of the expensive mandates, make it easier to build energy infrastructure across New Hampshire and across New England. And lastly, housing affordability-housing is expensive. There’s lots of federal housing funding coming from Washington. Let’s make sure people in the future can use it as effectively as possible. Let’s do affordability theNew Hampshire way.”

Tuesday also saw Sununu head to Whitefield for a few stops downtown, including the Whitefield Gun Shop, and then ultimately North Conway, where he spoke at a women’s forum at the Lobster Trap restaurant.

Leon Rideout, the host for Tuesday’s event in Lancaster at the VFW, said that this was part of the continuing mission of the John W. Weeks VFW Post 3041 to bring candidates to the community and vice versa, adding he would like to set up more opportunities like this.