Goodlander wins reelection to New Hampshire’s 2nd Congressional District

U.S. Rep. Maggie Goodlander defeated Republican challenger Lily Tang Williams in the race to represent New Hampshire’s 2nd Congressional District Tuesday. 

The Associated Press called the contest at 11:05 p.m., with Goodlander holding 60% of the vote with 61% of votes counted.

Williams had 37% of the vote when the race was called. Independent candidate Robbie Mahrou had 2%. 

Speaking in Concord earlier in the day, Goodlander listed priorities including lowering costs, rolling back tariffs imposed by President Donald Trump and bringing an end to the Iran War.

On Tuesday evening, as results began to trickle in, Goodlander addressed supporters.

“Whether you voted for me or not, I will work for you, all of you, with all my heart and everything I’ve got,” she said. 

This will be a second term for the Nashua native, who was first elected to Congress in 2024. Goodlander previously worked in intelligence with the U.S. Naval Reserve and as a law clerk, an attorney for the House Judiciary Committee, a foreign policy adviser for the late U.S. Sens. John McCain and Joe Lieberman, and with the U.S. Department of Justice during the administration of President Joe Biden.

Speaking outside the Christa McAuliffe School earlier Tuesday after casting her ballot, Goodlander said the election would come down to affordability and disapproval of the Iran war.

“The housing affordability crisis, the healthcare crisis, the childcare crisis, all these come down to really fundamental work that can be done and that must be done by Congress to lower the sky-high cost of living,” she said.

She went on to criticize Trump for the war and higher prices in New Hampshire. 

“There is a very clear reason why we see the cost of gas, the cost of diesel, the cost of home heating fuel through the roof: It’s the president’s decision to launch this war in Iran. We’ve got to end this war,” she said. 

Williams has run for Congress before, most recently challenging Goodlander for the seat in 2024, when she lost with 47% of the vote. She also ran in the 2020 primary but failed to secure the Republican nomination. Williams moved to New Hampshire from Colorado as part of the libertarian Free State Project. Though she has previously been seen as a far-right candidate, this election cycle she sought to portray herself as more moderate, telling the Bulletin she was focused on kitchen-table issues like affordability. 

Attendees at her Tuesday night watch party, hosted at Concord’s Grappone Conference Center, said they supported her dedication to individual freedom, including the right to bear arms, and her vocal opposition to socialism and communism.

“She supports the Second Amendment, when (Goodlander) seems to want laws against it,” said Marty Mullen, of Pittsfield, at the party. 

New Hampshire’s 2nd Congressional District covers much of Western and Northern New Hampshire, including the cities of Concord, Nashua, Salem and Hanover.