Down to the wire: Filing period closes with last-minute candidate for N.H. legislative race

CONCORD, N.H. — The clock on the wall inside the secretary of state’s office said 4:57 p.m. on Friday. Three minutes until the deadline for federal, state, and county candidates to file for this fall’s midterm elections in New Hampshire.

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That’s when Brok Woodward-Griffith of Manchester arrived. He said he decided “kind of on a lark” to sign up as a last-minute Democratic candidate for the New Hampshire Senate. But just before he stepped into the office to file his paperwork, a brief conversation in the hallway changed his mind.

A party operative informed Woodward-Griffith that the Democrats already had a candidate, Leonard Bell, lined up to challenge Republican incumbent Senator Victoria Sullivan in Manchester. He could still run for Senate if he wished. Or he could instead seek a seat in the New Hampshire House.

Woodward-Griffith, a first-time candidate, said he was glad to take the suggestion.

“I hadn’t really fully thought out even a campaign message for myself yet,” he said. “I wanted to make sure at least someone was running, and then I was going to figure it out as I went.”

He spent about two minutes filling out paperwork in the secretary of state’s office before realizing he would have to start over.

“I guess I brought the wrong form,” he said, with about 30 seconds to go before the deadline.

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Staffers in the office gave him the correct form at 5 p.m., allowed him to spend a few minutes filling it out, then accepted his $2 filing fee — a scene that underscored the low barrier to entry for those aspiring to join New Hampshire’s all-volunteer “citizen legislature,” which pays members a mere $100 per year.

Woodward-Griffith is up against Mary Freitas, Mark Grigoriev, and incumbent Patrick N. Long in the Democratic primary for two House seats in Hillsborough County District 26, which covers Manchester Ward 7. Just one candidate, Henry Emele, signed up for the Republican primary in that district.

While some state legislative primaries are contested, others have no candidates competing at all. In those situations, party leaders have a brief window to slot people into vacancies on the ballot. In recent years, that window closed on the Wednesday after the filing period; however, Republican Governor Kelly Ayotte signed legislation last week giving them 10 business days to complete this process.

Here’s how candidate filings shook out for New Hampshire’s three highest-profile 2026 races:

• Ones to watch: John E. Sununu and Scott Brown in the Republican primary, Chris Pappas and Karishma Manzur in the Democratic primary.
• Lesser-knowns: Six other GOP candidates (Tom Alciere, Sky Danley, Andy Martin, Mary Maxwell, Richard A. McMenamon II, and Sabrina Ann Smith), and three other Democratic candidates (David Jarvis, Maxwell L. Saal, and John Vail).
• Of interest: Jared Sullivan, who previously announced a Democratic bid for US Senate, opted to seek reelection to the New Hampshire House instead. Aaron Day, who ran as an independent in 2016 and claims to have filed again for the 2026 race, doesn’t appear on the state’s candidate lists.

• Democrats: Stefany Shaheen, Maura Sullivan, Christian Urrutia, Heath Howard, Carleigh Beriont, Sarah Chadzynski, Bill Conlin, Matthew Emerson, and Sarah Bella Spinosa.
• Republicans: Anthony DiLorenzo, Hollie Noveletsky, Melissa Bailey, Brian Cole, Lindsey Anderson, and Michael Anthony Callis.

• Ones to watch: Cinde Warmington, the only candidate who filed for the Democratic primary, is Ayotte’s most prominent challenger.
• Lesser-knowns: Besides Ayotte, two other GOP candidates, Shaun Fife and Bob Wayne McClory, are competing in the Sept. 8 primary.
• Of interest: Four independent candidates (Jon Kiper, Stephen Villee, John Horsley, and Everett Howard) have until Aug. 5 to submit their signed nomination papers to appear on the Nov. 3 general election ballot.

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