At a news meeting in Harmony, N.H., Sununu, 47, explained he appreciated those who had reached out but eventually resolved that he could be much more “impactful” by being in his current career rather than going to Washington.

“I like having things done,” Sununu reported. “I do not imagine they could tackle me down there. I’d be like a lion in a cage.”

Sununu explained that there was “definitely a interval where I was leaning towards running” for the Senate but that he concluded soon after consulting with some others that becoming a senator “doesn’t in good shape my style.” He portrayed the Senate as a slow-going institution rife with partisan politics.