Businessman Anthony DiLorenzo won the Republican primary Tuesday night for New Hampshire’s 1st Congressional District, the seat that includes Manchester and covers much of the southern part of the state.
DiLorenzo defeated Novel Iron Works owner Hollie Noveletsky and state Rep. Brian Cole to secure the nomination. The seat is currently held by Rep. Chris Pappas, D-N.H., who is giving it up to run for the U.S. Senate, leaving an open race in a district the nonpartisan Cook Partisan Voting Index rates D+2, meaning it leans slightly Democratic but is considered competitive.
The 1st District is the smaller of New Hampshire’s two congressional districts and includes Manchester, the state’s most populous city. It’s also the seat former White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt ran for in 2022, when Pappas beat her by just under 10 points.
The three Republican candidates agreed on most issues throughout the primary, but immigration became a flashpoint in the campaign’s final stretch. During a debate hosted by WMUR earlier this month, Noveletsky and Cole criticized DiLorenzo over comments he made on the podcast “The Granite Discourse,” in which he suggested deportation efforts should prioritize felons and violent criminals over immigrants who had not committed crimes since arriving in the country.
“Unlike Anthony, who is on record on Granite Discourse saying that if somebody came here illegally and was working that they should have a path, I disagree,” Noveletsky said during the debate.
DiLorenzo responded during the debate by saying he supports deporting people who entered the country illegally.
“I would start with the dangerous people, the criminals, the drug dealers, the human traffickers. The law is clear, and I support law enforcement and the enforcement of our laws,” DiLorenzo said.
President Donald Trump endorsed DiLorenzo in July, writing on Truth Social that “As a very successful Businessman and Entrepreneur, Anthony understands the America First Policies required to Create GREAT Jobs, Cut Taxes and Regulations, Unleash American Energy DOMINANCE, Promote MADE IN THE U.S.A., and Champion our Nation’s Golden Age.”
DiLorenzo also picked up endorsements from House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., Majority Leader Steve Scalise, R-La., and Majority Whip Tom Emmer, R-Minn. Noveletsky, for her part, was backed by a number of New Hampshire state officials as well as House Rules Committee Chairwoman Virginia Foxx, R-N.C.
DiLorenzo now heads into the general election facing a competitive race for a seat that will help determine the balance of power in a closely divided House.
