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Christopher T. "Chris" Sununu /səˈnuːnuː/ (born November 5, 1974) is an American politician and businessman who is the 82nd and current Governor of New Hampshire, since January 2017. Sununu was previously a member of the New Hampshire Executive Council, an office he held from (2011-2017). At age 49, Sununu is currently the youngest state Governor in the United States.

Sununu was born in Salem, New Hampshire. He also serves as chief executive officer of the Waterville Valley Ski Resort in Waterville Valley, New Hampshire. He earned a bachelor's degree from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Sununu is a son of former New Hampshire Governor John H. Sununu and brother of former U.S. Senator John E. Sununu.

Early life and education

Family

Sununu, one of eight siblings, was raised in Salem, New Hampshire. He is the son of Nancy (Hayes) and former Governor of New Hampshire and White House Chief of Staff John H. Sununu. His father's ancestors came to the United States from the Middle East around the start of the 20th century. His paternal ancestry is Palestinian from the Greek Orthodox Church of Jerusalem community in Jerusalem. Despite the family's ancestry from Jerusalem, some members of the family were from Beirut, in what is today Lebanon. His father was born in Havana, Cuba. Most of the last two generations of Sununus were also born in the United States.^[1] His mother's ancestors include immigrants from Ireland, as well as Scotland and England.^[1]

Education

• Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology, Fairfax County, Virginia, graduated 1993
• Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts, BS in Civil/Environmental Engineering, graduated 1998

Professional career

Engineering

From 1998 to 2006, Sununu worked as an environmental engineer designing systems and solutions for cleaning up waste sites. He specialized in soil and groundwater remediation, wastewater treatment plants, and landfill designs.

Business

• In 2010, Sununu led a group of investors in the buyout of Waterville Valley Resort where he works as Chief Executive Officer. Waterville Valley employs over 700 people in the North Country. Sununu is currently leading an aggressive expansion effort of the ski resort in cooperation with the United States Forest Service. The resort offers downhill skiing, Nordic skiing, golf, tennis, mountain biking, a year-round ice arena and conference center services.

• From 2006 to 2010, Sununu was an owner and director of Sununu Enterprises, a family business and strategic consulting group located in Exeter, NH. He focused much of his time on local, national and international real estate development, venture technologies and business acquisitions.

Elections

Executive Council 1st Term

In 2010, Chris Sununu (R) defeated incumbent Beverly Hollingworth (D) 53,053 to 41,875^[2] or 55.9% to 44.1%.

Executive Council 2nd Term

In 2012, Chris Sununu (R) defeated Bill Duncan (D) 75,856 to 55,432^[2] or 55.2% to 40.3%, with 4.5% going to Libertarian candidate Michael Baldassarre.

Executive Council 3rd Term

In 2014, Chris Sununu (R) defeated Robin McLane (D) 61,601 to 38,420^[3] or 61.6% to 38.4%.

Tenure/Committee Assignments

10-Year Highway Plan

On December 16, 2015, the Governor’s Advisory Commission on the Intermodal Transportation (GACIT) presented the 10-Year Plan for 2017-2026 to the Governor of State New Hampshire.^[4] Executive Counselor Sununu, as a voting member of GACIT, helped develop the blueprint which “aggressively addressed financial constraint, assuming federal funding of about $160 million per year.”^[5]

Ward Bird

In 2010, Councilor Sununu joined the other Executive Council members who voted unanimously to release Ward Bird from his mandatory three to six-year prison sentence for threatening another person with a gun. The five-member executive council voted unanimously on a motion by District 5 Councilor David Wheeler, to grant a full pardon to the Moultonborough farmer convicted of brandishing a gun at a woman who trespassed on his posted property in 2008. But Lynch, who has never granted a pardon during his tenure in the Corner Office, vetoed the measure, saying the judicial system had given Bird's case a thorough review and he would not undermine that. The council then immediately voted to commute his sentence, and Lynch let that vote stand.^[6]

Home Help NH

In 2011, The New Hampshire Executive Council worked with the New Hampshire Attorney General and Banking Department to approve and create Home Help NH. The group assists citizens placed in financial distress and, in some cases, taken advantage of by big banks during the sub-prime mortgage crisis.

Managed Medicaid

In 2011, Councilor Sununu led a series of public hearings to review proposals for Managed Medicaid, a program to help New Hampshire Medicaid recipients to coordinate their health care.^[7] It also helps Medicaid recipients with chronic diseases like diabetes, asthma, obesity, and mental illness. Through this program, Medicaid recipients have wellness and prevention programs as a part of their Medicaid benefit.

In 2014, a 300-page, $292 Million amendment to the state’s Medicaid program came before the Executive Council only two hours before the vote. Republicans Joseph Kenney and Chris Sununu urged the governor and other Democrats present not to vote for a contract that had not yet been read, but lost the vote 3-2 down party lines.^[8]

Personal life

Sununu is an active skier and rugby player and, in 1998, completed a five-month through-hike of the Appalachian Trail from Maine to Georgia. He lives with wife, Valerie, and their three children in Newfields, NH.^{[citation needed]}

References

Sources

• Chris Sununu for Governor
• New Hampshire bio of Sununu
• ABC News article on Sununu