MANCHESTER, N.H. – Congressman Chris Pappas celebrated his victory over Republican challenger Matt Mowers on Wednesday morning thanking a group of assembled supporters at Arms Park while also laying out a vision for his goals over the next two years.
Pappas said during his next term he aims to fight political attacks on the Affordable Care Act, help reduced pharmaceutical costs, address climate change, protect women’s reproductive rights, and help veterans.
To address these challenges, he stressed that he wants to work for all Granite Staters regardless of party affiliation or even whether they voted in this year’s election. During the campaign, Mowers attacked Pappas for his partisan voting record and according to Propublica, Pappas voted against the prevailing Democratic Party view on 97.5 percent of all roll call votes, putting him as the 258th most bipartisan member of the House of Representatives during his last term.
In response, Pappas referenced his ability to listen to viewpoints from across the political spectrum as well as compromises and discussions with Republicans in committee work to help craft bipartisan legislation.
Pappas shared his hopes that with the election over, Republicans and Democrats can share their ideas and act quickly on another COVID-19 relief package.
”I think we need to meet this moment right now when our country is divided and realize that there are Democratic and Republican solutions to every issue of the day,” said Pappas. “And when it comes to this pandemic, we have to be treating it as an American issue. It impacts all of our communities, every person is touched by it, and that’s why we need a bipartisan COVID relief package that will provide some results here.”
Over recent weeks, Pappas and other Democratic candidates in New Hampshire such as U.S. Senator Jeanne Shaheen have stressed the importance of providing aid to struggling hospitals as well municipalities feeling the strain of reduced tax revenue. Pappas said he would continue to work toward those initiatives but is willing to compromise with Republicans during the lame duck session if that would provide immediate support for Americans facing the pandemic and work on additional help later.
“We can do what we can now and improve on this in January,” he said.
In regard to the pending results of the Presidential Election and the ongoing partisan division across the country, Pappas believed New Hampshire’s election day process can act as a beacon for the rest of the country as it moves forward.
“The people of New Hampshire are accepting this result and I think we can show the rest of the nation how to come together and how we can address issues and concerns, and we we’ll try to bring that message to Washington,” said Pappas. “I think it’s a time for healing. It’s just a time to realize that not everything has to be political. We have to focus on people and results first and foremost.”