Sununu profits from Iran, Venezuela wars as gas prices surge

Republican John Sununu is getting richer off the wars in Iran and Venezuela, according to his personal financial disclosures. This may explain why he is cheering on the conflicts despite polls suggesting they are wildly unpopular.

Sununu is currently running for the U.S. Senate in New Hampshire, a position he previously held from 2003 to 2009.

The bulk of Sununu’s profits have come from his investments in oil and gas companies. As the wars drive up gas prices for consumers, the profits and stock values of those companies are rising as well.

“The first quarter is going to be phenomenal for these companies,” Leo Mariani, an analyst at Roth Capital Partners, told Reuters. “I don’t think there’s any way around that.”

Last year, Sununu and his wife reported owning between $77,000 and $280,000 in gas and oil stock, including up to $50,000 in ExxonMobil and $65,000 in Shell. This portfolio has grown by 24% since November 2025, with the biggest spikes following the January incursion into Venezuela and the February bombing of Iran.

The White House has provided multiple justifications for its Iran intervention, including regime change, protecting Israeli security, and stopping the country from acquiring a nuclear weapon. Joe Kent, who resigned his post as director of the National Counterterrorism Center in protest last month, insisted that the war is unnecessary and dangerous.

“I cannot in good conscience support the ongoing war in Iran,” Kent said in his resignation letter. “Iran posed no imminent threat to our nation.”

Sununu, meanwhile, has backed up the White House’s claims. In February, he told the radio show New Hampshire Today that the war was necessary to protect national security and that he would support a continued military presence in the country until the threat is eliminated.

“The real issue is that Iran cannot be allowed to have a nuclear weapon,” he said. “For the last 40 years, they have been the largest state sponsor of terrorism, global terrorism, so I think that the effort to eliminate their nuclear program … is the right focus for the administration to have.”

In a subsequent interview on the same show, Sununu dismissed concerns about the conflict’s effect on gas prices, saying that “the mission is important and critical.”

The White House has been similarly cagey about its rationale for invading Venezuela. Sununu told New Hampshire Today in January, however, that the conflict presented an opportunity for oil and gas development.

“I think there is an opportunity for the U.S. to provide technical assistance, advice, even financing to help rebuild [Venezuela’s] economy broadly and in the oil industry in particular,” he said.

Polling suggests that Sununu is out of step with most voters. An Ipsos poll found that only 33% of Americans approve of the military action in Venezuela. A Pew Research Center survey found that 61% don’t approve of the conflict in Iran.

Since leaving the Senate, Sununu has worked for Akin, a lobbying firm that represents clients in several industries, including energy and national defense. Between 2010 and 2019, Akin reported earning more than $5 million from oil and gas companies, including Shell.

In the Senate, Sununu supported the 2003 invasion of Iraq.

Sununu will face former New Zealand ambassador Scott Brown in a September 8 primary. The winner will likely face Democratic Rep. Chris Pappas in the general election.