Representative Chris Pappas, Democrat of New Hampshire, will be the Senate’s first openly gay male senator with his victory over former Senator John E. Sununu, a Republican, on Tuesday.
Like other candidates on the precipice of breaking a barrier, he did not spend much time emphasizing the milestone on the campaign trail. But it is a notable breakthrough in the Senate, as L.G.B.T.Q. rights have faced pushback in some states and some gay rights activists have warned about a decline in public support.
While his husband was in attendance at some of his campaign events, Mr. Pappas largely focused his message on the themes that most Democrats highlighted: a pledge to deal with high prices and health care costs, and opposition to Washington corruption, among others.
“I think people, regardless of their politics, really just want their neighbors to be able to be themselves,” Mr. Pappas told The New York Times in October.
Representative Barney Frank, Democrat of Massachusetts, voluntarily came out as gay in 1987, after six years of service in the House. Decades later, Tammy Baldwin, Democrat of Wisconsin, in 2012 became the first openly gay person elected to the Senate.
Before his career in politics took off, Mr. Pappas, 46, was probably most associated with his family’s restaurant in Manchester, N.H., the Puritan Backroom. His grandfather is said to have invented the chicken tender there.
At 22, Mr. Pappas ran for state representative in New Hampshire, winning the race. That set off a winding political career in the state, before he joined the wave of Democrats in 2018 that capitalized on anger against President Trump during his first term.
Mr. Pappas has served for four terms in the House and is a chair of the Congressional Equality Caucus. He will replace Senator Jeanne Shaheen, who did not seek re-election after three terms.
Jess Bidgood contributed reporting.
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