Anti-Corruption Agenda

Public trust in the government has hit historic lows, with just 17% of Americans saying they trust the government to do what’s right for Americans. Chris Pappas knows the system is rigged against people and in favor of corporate special interests, dark money groups, and entrenched politicians. He’s running for Senate because he understands that we need to change the way that Washington works and bring long-overdue reforms to a broken system.

For Chris representing Granite Staters in Congress will always be about public service, not self-service. That means rooting out corruption in Washington by closing the loopholes that allow current and former officials to get rich off their positions. Chris is fighting for a government that puts Granite Staters first and works for everyday Americans — not corporate special interests. Read more about his plan below. 

Stopping Corporate Special Interests From Buying Our Elections

Since the 2010 Citizens United decision, political spending fueled by dark money groups funded by corporations and ultra-rich ideological extremists has exploded. Dark-money spending that undermines our politics surged from less than $5 million in 2006 to more than $1.9 billion in 2024, surpassing the previous record of $1 billion in 2020.

Chris Pappas believes that the only way we can ensure candidates running for office put people first – not corporate PAC money – is by stopping corporate special interests from having an outsized role in our elections.

  • Pappas doesn’t take a dime of corporate PAC money.
  • He introduced the DISCLOSE Act to stop billionaires and corporate special interests from secretly buying our elections.
  • He supports overturning the Citizens United decision to restore power to the people.

Shutting the Revolving Door on Political Self-Interest in Washington

Politicians in Washington are gaming the system to get richer while Granite Staters pay more for everything across the board, and the corruption in Washington has spread to all levels of government.

Members of Congress are getting rich through stock trading. A Supreme Court justice has accepted undisclosed gifts from a billionaire. Members of the Trump Administration are getting rich off shady deals with the industries they regulate and with foreign governments, all while Trump and his family have raked in $4 billion since he returned to office, even as the cost of living has increased for hardworking New Hampshire families.

In New Hampshire Chris’s opponent is a classic example of former politicians going through the DC revolving door. John Sununu went to Washington almost thirty years ago and voted to serve the interests of Wall Street, Big Oil, and Big Pharma in the Senate—and then he cashed in, working for those same industries and making millions selling out to corporations while the people of New Hampshire paid the price.

Sununu has seen a “surge in his personal wealth” since leaving office, the bulk of which he acquired by “working for a lobbying law firm in Washington, D.C., and sitting on the boards of large companies.” Now Sununu wants to go back to Washington to sell out New Hampshire to Donald Trump and the same corporate special interests that have lined his pockets for years.

Chris Pappas believes that elected officials should be serving their constituents, not themselves and that it’s time to shut the revolving door on political self-interest in Washington.

  • Pappas broke with Democratic House leadership to support a ban on congressional stock trading.
  • He supports the No Getting Rich in Congress Act, which would strengthen reporting requirements for lobbying to ensure members of Congress and their spouses aren’t engaging in shadow lobbying.
  • He believes that ethics reforms must also extend to the Supreme Court, and the DISCLOSE Act would strengthen regulations on dark money and require organizations that spend on elections and judicial nominations to disclose their donors.
  • Pappas introduced the bipartisan Clean Legislating and Ethical Accountability Now (CLEAN) Act to codify the Office of Congressional Ethics, now called the Office of Congressional Conduct, the only independent internal watchdog that probes ethical breaches in Congress.
  • He supports the Public Integrity in Financial Prediction Markets Act of 2026, which bans members of Congress and government employees from trading on political prediction markets when they have or could easily get inside information through their jobs.
  • He backed the Fighting Foreign Influence Act, which would impose a lifetime ban on former members of Congress, U.S. military officers, and senior executive branch officials from lobbying on behalf of a foreign government.

Ending Executive Pay-to-Play Practices

When a new president takes office, their first priority should be delivering on promises made to working Americans, not delivering handouts to wealthy donors and powerful allies. Presidents shouldn’t be able to deliver no-bid contracts to donors, reward big corporations for pet project funding through quid-pro-quo deals, or use insider info to cash in on under-regulated prediction markets.

For the Trump Administration, reports show these actions are the new normal. Some of Trump’s wealthiest donors hold senior positions within his administration. Trump has granted clemency to more than 70 donors, allies, and other people convicted of fraud — including one pardoned after his family allegedly donated $3.5 million to a Trump super PAC. And the Trump Administration has awarded lucrative contracts to politically-connected companies, firms, and major MAGA donors like Elon Musk.  

At the same time, an onslaught of suspicious trading has occurred around multiple consequential actions taken by the Trump Administration. While Granite Staters are paying more for gas and groceries because of Trump’s war with Iran, well-connected individuals appear to be cashing in while Trump insiders like Donald Trump Jr. serve in senior roles at Kalshi and Polymarket.

Chris Pappas believes that it is essential for Congress to start cracking down on the Trump Administration’s pay-to-play practices, and it’s time to start looking at common-sense ways to ensure prediction markets aren’t a vehicle for insider trading.

Additional Priorities