Josh Elliott Sparks Connecticut Governor Primary as Democrats Back Ned Lamont

Connecticut Politics in Turmoil: A Gubernatorial Battle

HARTFORD – Gov. Ned Lamont emerged victorious in a state convention battle for the Democratic endorsement for governor, but Hamden state Rep. Josh Elliott secured the right to challenge him in the primary, marking a turbulent week in Connecticut politics for both Democrats and Republicans.

A quarter of the 1,969 delegates at the Democratic State Convention supported Elliott over Lamont when the voting concluded early Saturday afternoon at the Bushnell Center for the Performing Arts in Hartford. This result reflects the sentiments of party insiders after nearly eight years of Lamont's leadership. In the upcoming primary election on August 11, Democratic voters will decide whether to remain with Lamont or support Elliott as the nominee for the fall ballot.

The balloting on the gubernatorial race began with Andover casting its lone vote for Elliott, followed by Ansonia casting its eight votes for Lamont. Ultimately, Lamont defeated Elliott with a vote of 1,468 to 501.

Democratic delegates learned that Greenwich state Sen. Ryan Fazio had secured the GOP endorsement outright just before they unanimously endorsed Lt. Gov. Susan Bysiewicz to start the convention balloting Saturday. At the GOP convention, former New York Lt. Gov. Betsy McCaughey fell short of automatically qualifying for a primary opportunity, unlike Elliott.

However, a surprising development occurred the day before the GOP convention began when Erin Stewart suspended her gubernatorial campaign and endorsed Fazio after a report alleged she had misused a city-issued credit card as mayor of New Britain. The three-way Republican race had been largely seen as a contest between Stewart and Fazio for the endorsement and whether there would be a primary.

Among Democratic delegates, there was little doubt that Elliott would earn a primary shot for the party's nomination. The gubernatorial endorsement was the only competitive convention contest, as Bysiewicz, Attorney General William Tong, Treasurer Erick Russell, Comptroller Sean Scanlon, and Secretary of the State Stephanie Thomas faced no party challengers and were all endorsed by acclamation.

Before the state convention, Lamont was widely seen as the favorite to win the endorsement. However, there was also much speculation about the insurgent Elliott and how much his vote total would exceed the 15% threshold required to automatically qualify for a primary.

U.S. Sen. Chris Murphy, a Lamont supporter, stated before the balloting that he did not believe Elliott's vote tally mattered or said much about his candidacy.

"If there's going to be a primary, I don't know that it matters what the specific percentage is," Murphy said. "What will matter is what happens in that primary."

Both Lamont and Elliott expressed optimism before the balloting for the endorsement started.

"I think we're doing pretty good," Lamont said. "Probably Fazio is just really hoping there will be a primary, and we'll see how the delegates feel. It is what it is."

Elliott expressed confidence that he would secure more than enough delegate votes to continue his campaign against Lamont.

"I've been working for nine months," he said.

Elliott claimed his campaign's unofficial tally suggested he would get 25% of the convention vote, which proved accurate.

"Today, we're going to kill it," he said. "I would love to do 30%, or 50%. I mean, the more, the better."

Elliott planned to take the contest all the way to the Aug. 11 primary and looked forward to making his case to primary voters.

"Here's what I want the takeaway to be. Over the last nine months, I've been speaking directly to tens of thousands of people through my emails. It wasn't flashy. This wasn't a Mamdani campaign," he said, referring to New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani. "I love him, but what I wanted people to learn was who I am and what this campaign stands for, and it's really been the inside players for the last nine months. What we show with that 26% is that we know how to do the job, and we know how to do the job well."

The convention battle between Lamont and Elliott closed out a turbulent week in Connecticut politics.

The Republicans faced Stewart's withdrawal on Thursday. For the Democrats, former Hartford Mayor Luke Bronin upset 14-term incumbent U.S. Rep. John Larson to win the Democratic endorsement Monday in the 1st Congressional District. A three-way August primary with Bronin, Larson, and state Rep. Jillian Gilchrest will decide the candidate for the fall election.

Lamont for Governor

Without naming Elliott or mentioning the Democratic primary, Lamont appealed for party unity and made an overture to Elliott delegates in his acceptance speech.

"We're here on behalf of the people who voted for us and on behalf of the people that didn't vote for us, because that's what we do. We're Democrats. And I'm going to be fighting just as hard for each and every one of you as I'm fighting for the middle-class and working families in this state," he told the delegates.

Lamont made no references to Fazio, either, but rather focused on President Donald Trump and the Republican Party in general.

"You know, we're challenging one of the most dangerous and extreme and corrupt presidents in my lifetime, and I've been around for a while. And this is why sooner rather than later Democrats can be united," Lamont said. "We're going to stand tall and show what we're made of and beat him back, win Congress this fall, and take control of our destiny."

Lamont, 71, is seeking what could be a history-making third gubernatorial term should he be reelected and serve the full four years.

This will be Lamont's third statewide primary contest. He made a political name for himself by upsetting then-U.S. Sen. Joe Lieberman in a three-way Democratic primary for the Senate in 2006, but Lieberman later won reelection running as a petition candidate. Four years later, Lamont unsuccessfully challenged future two-term Gov. Dannel P. Malloy for the Democratic nomination for governor.

In the 2018 race for governor, Lamont easily turned back a primary challenge from Bridgeport Mayor Joe Ganim, who fell short of the 15% threshold to force a primary. But Ganim succeeded in gathering enough signatures to force a primary run-off that Lamont won with 81.2% of the vote.

Elliott for Governor

Elliott, 41, is serving his fifth two-year term in the House representing his hometown of Hamden. He said he will remain a candidate for his House seat but has no plans to raise funds or accept any contributions.

A lawyer, Elliott is a deputy speaker and co-chairs the 102-member Democratic majority caucus. He also serves on the influential screening committee that reviews legislation and sets agendas.

Known as one of the legislature's most progressive members, Elliott has said one reason for his challenge of Lamont is due to the governor's consistent opposition to higher tax rates on the state's wealthiest residents.

Elliott says he would increase state income taxes on residents earning more than $1 million annually. State Sen. Saud Anwar, D-South Windsor, stressed this campaign theme in his nominating speech for Elliott.

"People can no longer settle for a Democratic Party that is good enough. We can no longer settle for a Democratic Party is afraid to tax the top 1%," Anwar told convention delegates. "We can no longer settle for a Democratic Party that puts the middle class last. This is not the time for politics as usual. We need somebody who can stand up for the people, with a strong backbone against the powers outside of the state, but also powers inside the state."

But in his acceptance speech, Lamont highlighted how he and the legislature approved the first reductions in the income tax rates since 1996. Starting with the 2024 tax year, the initial rate declined from 3% to 2% and the second rate decreased 5% to 4.5%. Lamont also pointed to tax changes that fully exempt Social Security benefits and pension and annuity income for single filers earning below $75,000 and joint filers earning below $100,000.

"Susan and I have eliminated the income tax for working families in this state," Lamont said, referring to Bysiewicz. "And I hope that makes an enormous difference. We have eliminated the income tax for most of our seniors when it comes to Social Security, when it comes to their pensions. That makes an enormous difference."

Campaign Funds for Primary

Elliott said he is confident that he will qualify for public financing for his primary campaign through the Citizens' Election Program in a few weeks. He needs to raise $335,500 in qualifying contributions, and he said his campaign is within $40,000 of that threshold. If successful, he will receive a primary grant of $3,750,355.

"We've been running this campaign with basically no money, but once we have $4 million and we show the public the massive difference between who I am and who Ned Lamont says he is and who Ned Lamont actually is that is going to propel us to a win in August, because what I know how to do is knock on doors, connect with people, and spread a message that people are already heeding, and that's why we connect. That's why even when we're running up against somebody with unlimited funds, who's known by every single person in this room, we still have enough to be on the ballot, and it wasn't even close."

The independently wealthy Lamont is largely financing his campaign himself. Four years ago, he raised about $26.3 million for his first reelection campaign, providing about $25.5 million himself. The governor reported raising $669,320 through the January to April reporting quarter.

Lamont closed his acceptance speech invoking the lyrics of legendary Jamaican singer-songwriter Bob Marley and appealing for Democratic unity after delegates had set up a primary for the gubernatorial nomination.

"I need Democrats united. I need Democrats strong. I need Democrats fighting for working families. I need Democrats fighting for the middle class," he said. "I need Democrats fighting for our rights. I need Democrats standing up to Donald Trump, and we do that if we stay united and strong, and every day you have to get up and stand up for your rights. Get up. Stand up. Don't give up the fight."