Maggie Goodlander, the wife of Biden’s national security adviser Jake Sullivan, is exploring a run for Congress in New Hampshire and is believed to be the front-runner in what is expected to be a closely contested Democratic primary.
“She is seriously considering it,” Kathy Sullivan, the former New Hampshire Democratic chairwoman, told DailyMail.com.
Goodlander, 37, is reaching out to New Hampshire Democrats as she considers a bid. She spoke with Sullivan on Monday.
She and Sullivan are considered a DC power couple and each hold high-profile jobs in President Joe Biden’s administration: She is a top lawyer at the Justice Department and he is Biden’s top adviser on foreign policy, including the wars in Ukraine and the Middle East. East.
Maggie Goodlander, married to Biden’s national security adviser Jake Sullivan, is considering running for Congress
Goodlander’s entry into the race would turn the congressional race into a national competition. Goodlander is originally from New Hampshire and comes from a storied, wealthy family in the state. Given her and Sullivan’s ties to national Democrats like Bill and Hillary Clinton, the fight would be awash with money and high-profile endorsements.
“I think the combination of who she is, who she married and the family backstory is interesting on a national level,” Matthew Bartlett, a veteran New Hampshire politician, told DailyMail.com.
Goodlander and Sullivan married in 2015 in a ceremony on the Yale campus attended by Bill and Hillary Clinton, future Secretary of State Antony Blinken, Democratic Senator Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota and Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer. Clinton gave a talk at the wedding.
The couple owns a $2.2 million home in a tony neighborhood in Portsmouth, NH. It has been their primary residence since 2018, although they have a home in Washington DC due to their jobs.
A source close to Goodlander said people in New Hampshire contacted her about running for the Democratic Rep. seat. Annie Kuster being released and that is why Goodlander is considering an offer.
She would have to resign from her job if she decides to run for office because federal employees cannot run for political office under the Hatch Act.
As a federal employee, Sullivan would be severely limited in what he could do for her campaign.
The Hatch Act contains a long list of what federal employees cannot do, including using their title to help a candidate and organizing a fundraiser. It’s unclear how much campaigning he could even do for his wife. The White House counsel’s office would be consulted about his options.
National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan and Maggie Goodlander married in 2015; their wedding was attended by many prominent Democrats, including Senator Amy Klobuchar
Senator Becky Whitley (above center) announced she is running for the seat in Congress; Whitley posted a photo of the White House Easter Egg Roll with Maggie Goodlander (left) and Kayla Montgomery, a top official at Planned Parenthood, (right)
Then-Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton walked with then-Deputy Chief of Staff Jake Sullivan in November 2009
New Hampshire’s second congressional district is one of the most competitive in the country. Kuster’s decision to retire after six terms in Congress has left both parties invested in finding a strong candidate. The winner of the seat could determine which party controls the House of Representatives next year.
Goodlander is not as well known as Sullivan, who has become the face of Biden’s foreign policy, but she comes from a famous New Hampshire family.
Her grandfather, Samuel Tamposi, was the son of Romanian immigrants and a real estate developer who brought many Fortune 500 companies to the state, including Fidelity Investments, Anheuser Busch and Coca-Cola.
He was also part owner of the Boston Red Sox and was friends with legendary player Ted Williams.
Sam Tamposi also became a major player in Republican politics, raising millions and becoming a power broker among the Republican party.
Goodlander’s mother, Betty Tamposi, ran for Congress in the 2nd Congressional District in 1988, but lost in the Republican primary.
Betty Tamposi has close ties to the Bush and Sununu families and was appointed Assistant Secretary of State under President George HW Bush. Tamposi was fired during the 1992 election due to a controversy over Bill Clinton’s passport information.
During the 1992 election, when Clinton was running against her boss, President George HW Bush, Tamposi had Clinton’s passport information sent to her home in Virginia, claiming she was protecting it from tampering.
At the time, Clinton’s travels as a student and his draft reports on the Vietnam War were major political issues.
Although unclassified, passport information is protected by the Privacy Act and access is limited to those who need it for official government business.
Bush ultimately fired her because Tamposi’s deputies also searched the passport files of independent presidential candidate Ross Perot during the campaign, prompting Perot to accuse the Bush administration of a “gross abuse of federal power.”
Goodlander’s father, Theodore Goodlander, is also a real estate developer and businessman. Her parents’ divorce in 2009 made headlines in New Hampshire newspapers as the couple had a bitter battle over the family’s financial assets.
Despite Tamposi’s ties to Republicans, Goodlander would run for the Democratic Party.
In many ways, her story parallels Annie Kuster, the woman she would try to replace in Congress. Kuster’s parents were prominent Republican officials in New Hampshire, but she became a Democrat.
The race to replace Kuster is already competitive. Colin Van Ostern, former gubernatorial candidate and former campaign manager of Kuster, announced that he is running for the seat.
And on Wednesday, State Senator Becky Whitley announced her bid.
Whitley was in Washington DC on Monday to attend the White House Easter Egg Roll. She posted a photo from the event with Goodlander and Kayla Montgomery, a top official at Planned Parenthood.
Goodlander’s grandfather Sam Tamposi (left) was co-owner of the Boston Red Sox and friends with legendary player Ted Williams (right)
Goodlander’s mother Betty Tamposi was a top State Department official under President George HW Bush
Goodlander actually lives in a different congressional district than the one she would be running for.
But she was born in Nashua County on Election Day and grew up there.
Her grandfather influenced the development of Nashua into the city it is today.
A graduate of Yale Law, Goodlander clerked for Senators Joe Lieberman and John McCain, clerked for Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer and taught constitutional law at the University of New Hampshire Law School and Dartmouth.
She is a Navy reservist and worked as an intelligence officer for eleven years. She also serves on the board of the New Hampshire Women’s Foundation.
She and Sullivan met at a security conference in Munich when she worked for Lieberman.
The ties to the Clintons come from Sullivan, who worked for Hillary Clinton during her presidential campaign and during her time as Secretary of State.
There is still plenty of time for Goodlander to make a decision. The filing deadline is in June and the primaries aren’t until September 10.
At one point it was Sullivan who was considering a congressional bid.
He told the Wall Street Journal last month that he thought about it but lost interest after seeing the toll it takes on politicians.
“I have seen the lives of politicians,” he said. “And I’m like, ‘That’s not for me.’ ‘