Who is Maggie Goodlander, NH Democratic candidate for Congress in 2nd District?

NASHUA — Maggie Goodlander, a former senior White House aide in President Joe Biden’s administration, announced her candidacy for New Hampshire’s 2nd Congressional District on Thursday.

“I’ve served in all three branches of government and I know how to deliver for New Hampshire,” Goodlander said in a post on X. “I'll be a workhorse for the people of the Second District and will never stop fighting for a freer and more just Granite State.”

The race broke wide open in late March when current Rep. Annie Kuster, D-New Hampshire, announced she will not seek reelection. With Goodlander’s bid, there are now three Democrats in the race, including former Executive Councilor Colin Van Ostern and current state Sen. Becky Whitley, D-Hopkinton.

Goodlander's entrance is a notable development as her national political ties could shake up the current status of a race where Van Ostern is seemingly Kuster's hand-picked successor.

Who is Maggie Goodlander?

Most recently a senior adviser in the White House, Goodlander also served as a deputy assistant attorney general in the US Department of Justice, was a law clerk to Justice Stephen Breyer and then Chief Judge Merrick Garland, and worked as an advisor to U.S. senators John McCain and Joseph Lieberman.

She is the wife of Jake Sullivan, the U.S. national security adviser.

She is a graduate of Yale University and Yale Law School, and was an adjunct professor at the University of New Hampshire Franklin Pierce School of Law.

In her announcement video, Goodlander said she wants to fight for reproductive health freedoms, telling her story of losing a baby in 2023. She also said she will “always stand up to bullies.”

“The bullies have too much power in America right now. Right wing judges, extreme politicians, big corporations, all have too much power,” said Goodlander. “I’m ready to take these bullies on.”

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Goodlander was born and raised in Nashua and has deep family ties to the state. Her grandfather Samuel Tamposi was a real estate mogul in Nashua and prominent GOP activist, and her mother, Betty Tamposi, served in the New Hampshire House and unsuccessfully ran for Congress as a Republican in 1988.

Goodlander and her husband Sullivan bought a house in 2018 in Portsmouth, which is in New Hampshire’s first congressional district, according to the Concord Monitor. The Constitution does not mandate that a candidate live in the specific congressional district they are running in, just the state, but she recently started renting a home in Nashua, located in the second district, according to the Monitor.

Sullivan, Goodlander's husband, was also a top aide to Hillary Clinton ahead of the 2016 election. In 2015, former President Bill and Hillary Clinton, current U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, and Breyer all attended the couple's wedding.

Who are the other Democratic candidates for U.S. House in NH's 2nd District?

Van Ostern, former New Hampshire Executive Council member and 2016 Democratic gubernatorial nominee, jumped into the race one day after Kuster announced she would not be seeking reelection.

Van Ostern previously served as Kuster’s campaign manager, and she endorsed him soon after his announcement. He has garnered over 300 public supporters, according to his campaign, including former Gov. John Lynch.

State Sen. Becky Whitley announced her candidacy in April following a brief exploratory period. She is a progressive Democrat representing the Concord area who has pushed for reproductive freedom in the state.

Who are the Republican candidates for NH-02?

Eight Republicans have announced their own candidacies for Congress, including Vikram Mansharamani and Lily Tang Williams.

Williams, from Weare, also ran for the seat in 2022, finishing third in the GOP primary.

Mansharamani is a businessman from Lincoln who ran for U.S. Senate in 2022. He finished fourth in the GOP primary then.

Candidates can officially file for candidacy June 5-14. The primaries will be held Sept. 10, and the general election will be held along with the presidential election on Nov. 5.

This article originally appeared on Portsmouth Herald: Maggie Goodlander leaves White House to run for Congress in NH