Three candidates are running in the September 10 Democratic primary for New Hampshire’s 2nd Congressional District

Three candidates are running in the Democratic primary for New Hampshire’s 2nd Congressional District—Maggie Goodlander (D), John Neenos (D), and Colin Van Ostern (D). Two candidates lead in media attention: Goodlander and Van Ostern. Incumbent Rep. Annie Kuster (D), who was first elected in 2012, is not running for re-election.

New Hampshire Public Radio’s Josh Rogers said, “So far in this race, there’s little to choose between the two Democrats, save for their biographies. As far as issues go, both Goodlander and Van Ostern mostly agree.” According to Rogers, the candidates used their backgrounds to distinguish themselves in the primary. Referencing Goodlander’s government experience, Van Ostern said, “I’m in this race to fix Washington, not to defend it.” Regarding Van Ostern’s past runs for office, Goodlander said, “I’m not a perennial candidate; I’m not a professional politician.”

Goodlander was a senior White House aide in President Joe Biden‘s administration, where she led Biden’s Unity Agenda. From January 2021 to February 2024, she served in the U.S. Department of Justice as a counselor to the attorney general and later deputy assistant attorney general. Between college and law school, Goodlander was an advisor to U.S. Sens. John McCain (R-Ariz.) and Joe Lieberman (I-Conn.). After completing law school, she was a law clerk for then-U.S. Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer and then-U.S. Courts of Appeals Chief Judge Merrick Garland.

Goodlander said one factor that led her to run for Congress was when she lost her son during the 20th week of her pregnancy: “I needed immediate in-patient ob/gyn care and yet getting a timely appointment was not possible as doctors were inundated with patients traveling north from states with abortion bans and other draconian post- Roe restrictions. My access to care was scheduled one day too late, and I was forced to manage a stillbirth by myself in a hotel bathtub.”

Van Ostern represented District 2 on the New Hampshire Executive Council from 2013 to 2017. In 2016, he ran for Governor of New Hampshire. Chris Sununu defeated Van Ostern in the general election, 49% to 46.7%. Van Ostern previously worked for multiple companies, including NextGen Manchester: NH Biofabrication Cluster, Stonyfield Yogurt, Alumni Ventures, and Southern New Hampshire University.

Van Ostern said he is running for Congress to restore people’s faith that the government can work for them: “I want to fix what’s broken in Washington, and I have some very specific ideas about how to do that. The only way to fix what’s broken in Congress right now is to put what’s best for everyday people in middle-class families first again.”

Kuster endorsed Van Ostern, who was a campaign manager for her 2010 congressional campaign. EMILY’s List, an organization that works to elect Democratic pro-choice women to office, endorsed Goodlander.

Ballotpedia provides race forecasts from four outlets: The Cook Political Report, Inside Elections, Sabato’s Crystal Ball, and DDHQ/The Hill. To see how each outlet rates the general election, click here.