CONCORD (AP) — Former U.S. Sen. John E. Sununu said yesterday he won't run next year for the Senate seat being vacated by fellow New Hampshire Republican Judd Gregg.
Sununu, who was defeated last year, told The Associated Press he's busy working with technology firms and nonprofit organizations and as a member of the panel overseeing the government's bailout of the financial sector. All eyes had been on him as the race to replace the retiring Gregg shaped up.
"This year is not the right timing," Sununu said in a telephone interview.
Sununu, of Waterville Valley, also cited the sacrifice a campaign would mean for his family.
"After running in seven primary and general elections over 12 years, my family still means more to me than anything else," he said.
Sununu, 44, served three terms in the U.S. House from 1996 to 2002. He defeated incumbent Republican Sen. Bob Smith in a primary in 2002 and went on to beat former Gov. Jeanne Shaheen in the general election.
Last year, Shaheen turned the tables on Sununu and beat him to become New Hampshire's first female U.S. senator.
Sununu is on the boards of telecommunications company Time Warner Cable Inc., medical devices maker Boston Scientific Corp. and the holding company for financial services firm BNY ConvergEx Group. He also is a member of the Congressional Oversight Panel for the Treasury's Troubled Asset Relief Program.
He recently led a delegation monitoring elections in Lebanon and serves on the Middle East working group for the U.S. Institute of Peace.
Gregg, 62, is in his third Senate term. He agreed in February to become U.S. commerce secretary but then changed his mind — and announced he also wouldn't run for re-election to the Senate in 2010.
Sununu's decision opens the door to a number of others. Attorney General Kelly Ayotte is among those rumored to be interested in running. Ayotte has repeatedly declined to comment.
Other potential Republican candidates include former gubernatorial nominee Ovide Lamontagne, former congressional hopeful Sean Mahoney, Nashua businessman Fred Tausch and former U.S. Rep. Charles Bass.
Democratic U.S. Rep. Paul Hodes is seeking his party's nomination. Hodes defeated Bass in the 2nd Congressional District in 2006.
