New Hampshire's Ticket-Splitting Habit Survived the 2026 Election

New Hampshire's reputation for splitting its ballot held up on November 3. Voters returned Republican Governor Kelly Ayotte to office while sending Democrats to all of the state's seats in Congress, the Boston Globe reported.

The pattern is familiar enough that it should temper any national reading of the results. Representative Chris Pappas beat Republican John E. Sununu for the Senate seat being vacated by Jeanne Shaheen, a contest the Associated Press called at 8:22 p.m. with 20 percent of precincts reporting. Stefany Shaheen, the retiring senator's daughter and a former Portsmouth city councilor, won Pappas's open 1st District seat over Republican Anthony DiLorenzo, who had President Trump's endorsement. Representative Maggie Goodlander held the 2nd District against Lily Tang Williams for a second time. Hours later, Ayotte was declared the winner over Democrat Cinde Warmington.

That combination is a warning against treating the state as a single political signal. Granite State voters have long shown they will pick Republicans for Concord and Democrats for Washington, and they did it again in a year when the Senate race carried national weight for Democratic control of the chamber.

One other fact worth keeping in view: incumbency in the corner office remains formidable. The last New Hampshire governor to lose a bid for a second term was Craig Benson in 2004.

This story was first reported by The Boston Globe.