It is not often a man catches lightning in a bottle.

It is almost unheard of to catch it twice.

But that is what Republican Scott Brown, formerly of Massachusetts, is trying to do in New Hampshire.

Brown, 65, the last Republican Senator from Massachusetts, is running for the U.S. Senate in New Hampshire where he was born and where he returned to after serving as U.S. ambassador to New Zealand.

Catching lightning in a bottle is a phrase that goes back to Benjamin Franklin who supposedly tied a key to a kite during a storm to catch a bolt of lightning for his bottle in his experiment with electricity.

It didn’t quite happen that way, but that is the myth, which always plays better than the truth.

It was an amazing accomplishment anyway. Hence the phrase.

Brown, politically speaking, did the same thing when as a relatively unknown Republican state senator he came out of nowhere like a bolt of lightning in 2010 to get elected to the U.S. Senate.

He stormed the state in his beat up old red pickup to upset Democrat Attorney General Martha Coakley, the clear favorite, in heavily Democrat Massachusetts. It was a special election to fill out the Senate term of longtime Sen. Ted Kennedy who had just died.

It was a startling campaign victory, if not heard around the world, was certainly heard at the White House, then occupied by President Barack Obama.

Two years later the Democrats backed Harvard professor Elizabeth Warren who, with backing from Obama and the Democrat establishment, defeated Brown for election to a full six-year term.

Brown, married to former Boston television reporter (WCVB-TV) Gail Huff, moved back to New Hampshire where his family has deep roots.

In 2014 he ran unsuccessfully against incumbent Democrat Sen.  Jeanne Shaheen, losing by a mere three points.

Now, after a stint as President Donald Trump’ ambassador to New Zealand, Brown is running again. Only this time the senate seat is open as Shaheen has opted not to seek re-election.

Brown, so far the only Republican running, got into the race after former New Hampshire Republican Gov. Chris Sununu ruled out a run.

The lone Democrat running is three term U.S. Rep. Chris Pappas, whose claim to fame is that he defeated Republican challenger Karoline Leavitt in 2022.

It was the best thing that happened to Leavitt since she went on to become Trump’s effective White House press secretary who has more access to the president than Pappas, or any other Democrat, could ever dream of having.

So, look for Trump to take a keen interest in the Brown campaign, not only because Brown is a supporter and was an ambassador, but he could use his vote in the Senate.  Brown also has Leavitt on his side as well.

Also, New Hampshire has been a sore spot for Trump. He has not carried the state in the three times he has run for president. He lost the state to Hillary Clinton in 2016, to Joe Biden in 2020 and to Kamala Harris in 2024.

All of this took place before Trump, in the short months he has been president the second time around, has developed into one of the most powerful, effective and relevant presidents since the Roosevelt/Truman era.

The latest example of his leadership is the passage of his big, beautiful bill that all the Democrats opposed.

Before it passed the House, the Senate approved it on a narrow 51 to 50 vote with all the Democrats, including Shaheen voting against it. Vice President JD Vance was called upon to break the tie.

Brown would have voted for it.

A Brown victory in New Hampshire would be a victory for Trump. Let’s see if lightning strikes twice.

Veteran political reporter Peter Lucas can be reached at: peter.lucas@bostonherald.com