The Steve Marchand Podcast

E33: Maura Sullivan

Maura Sullivan is a leading contender for an open congressional seat - New Hampshire's 1st CD - considered one of the most competitive in America. As a first-time candidate for public office in 2018 - running in this same NH-1 the last time it was an open seat - Sullivan earned a strong 2nd place finish in an 11-way primary with over 30% of the vote.In the meantime, she's been deeply involved in state politics, adding to her record of public service centered around her career as a U.S. Marine. In this episode, we discussed plenty of policy, including America's growing wealth gap, the unaffordability of everyday life, health care, and foreign policy.However, I was eager to spend a lot of time getting into Maura's time in the Marines, and the moments in her life that set her on a path that's led to combat readiness exercises in Japan, serving in the middle of the Iraq War in Fallujah, being at Quantico in her first full day as a full-fledged Marine on (of all days) September 11th, 2001, and serving in the Obama Administration. I've known and been friends with Maura for more than eight years...but I still learned a lot in this conversation about what makes her tick, and why she is a formidable candidate with a lot to offer at this moment.#nhpolitics [https://www.youtube.com/hashtag/nhpolitics] #congress [https://www.youtube.com/hashtag/congress] #2026election [https://www.youtube.com/hashtag/2026election] ‪@stevemarchandnh‬ [https://www.youtube.com/@stevemarchandnh] #marines [https://www.youtube.com/hashtag/marines] #democrats [https://www.youtube.com/hashtag/democrats]

Projecting the 2026 NH State Senate Elections, V1.0

Today's episode is based on a live show recorded on Tuesday, April 28th, which gave my paid Substack subscribers a sneak preview ahead of the full "2026 NH State Senate Projection Show, V1.0". The full show, with graphics, charts, and full data, is available at my YouTube channel [https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCES_daZPEidU7LifTncbokw]. This is a trimmed down, audio-friendly version of the full show, which gets into the six senate districts currently held by NH Republicans...and which could flip in various "shades" of a Blue Wave 2026. I also spend time going through why certain types of communities are moving steadily towards the GOP and Democrats, and how that is reflected in the modeling I've successfully developed over the past six years to accurately project downballot results going back to 2020. Read a lot more about this type of work I do analyzing NH and national politics at www.SteveMarchand.com.

E31: Stefany Shaheen

In the Democratic primary for NH's 1st congressional district - a purple seat that is open because incumbent Democrat Chris Pappas is pursuing NH's U.S. Senate seat - Stefany Shaheen has been the frontrunner since entering the race in May of last year. That's the advantage of being the daughter of the historic political figure Pappas is hoping to succeed - Senator Jeanne Shaheen, the first woman in American history to be elected Governor and Senator. However, with that name ID also comes increased scrutiny, and a *lot* of questions directly related to the family's legacy. On today's episode, I purposely did not want to spend much time on such topics. Instead, we ran the gambit, from policy (the weeds of health care, inflation, AI, and more) to the surprisingly conservative politics of GenX (we were both born in 1974), to the thread of competitive sports that many may not know runs through her life. You can learn more about Shaheen's campaign at www.StefanyShaheen.com.

E30: Live Post-Game Show after a Key Democratic Primary Forum in CD-1

Following one of the first forums involving most of the sprawling field for the open, competitive Democratic primary in New Hampshire's 1st congressional district, Steve Marchand brought in each of the five candidates for live interviews. They talked about how they thought the event went, what they are hearing on the campaign trail, answered follow-up questions from Steve (who moderated the event), and looked at how the race is evolving. Rep. Chris Pappas (D- Manchester) is vacating the seat after four terms to seek the U.S. Senate seat being vacated by the retirement of Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH). The event took place in front a large live audience in Barrington, NH. #nhpolitics #uspolitics #2026election #newhampshire

E29: Breaking Down the St. A's Poll w/Matt Wilhelm

On Monday, Saint Anselm College released a new poll [https://www.anselm.edu/about/anselmian-hub/news/new-poll-saint-anselm-college-survey-shows-democrats-gaining-ground-republicans-face-political-headwinds] asking a wide range of questions about New Hampshire's 2026 elections and political landscape. The headline? The NH electorate is deeply dissatisfied with the direction of the country, and is poised to deliver a strong election night for federal - and perhaps state-level - Democratic candidates. The same electorate also said Governor Ayotte was basically treating water, that they were firmly against a state income tax, and that the Free State Project is getting better known...but quite disliked. To go through all this, I had veteran State Rep. Matt Wilhelm (D-Manchester) as my guest. He is the head of the Democratic Victory Campaign Committee (or DVCC, the House Dems' election operation), and is the former Democratic Leader of the House. Much to discuss in this fast-paced episode, particularly for political junkies who want a good snapshot of where NH stands barely seven months before the midterms.