by Doug Hardy and Niveen Ghoneim
With six of seven possible seats up for election this year, Connecticut’s congressional delegation remained in Democratic hands Tuesday following what was likely going to end up being five lopsided victories and one that was close in the 5th, once official results are in.
Democrats were not celebrating early Wednesday, however, following what appeared to be another likely victory for former president Donald Trump over Vice President Kamala Harris within a red wave that Democrats were not expecting.
Trump was declared winner in Pennsylvania early Wednesday, similar to his victory over Hillary Clinton in 2016, leaving him with 266 electoral votes – just four shy of the 270 needed to win. Alaska, with three electoral votes, and Maine’s 2nd Congressional District, with one electoral vote, were both leaning Republican early Wednesday.
Meanwhile, Republicans had taken control of the US Senate, flipping seats in Ohio and West Virginia on their way to winning the minimum of four they needed to reach a 51-42 seat majority with seven seats still up for grabs.
Control of the US House was still uncertain at 4 a.m. as Republicans were holding 193 seats to the Democrats’ 173, with 218 needed for control.
Associated Press Calls Senate Race For Murphy
US Sen. Chris Murphy extended his lead over Republican challenger Matthew Corey overnight after he was declared winner shortly after the polls closed at 8 p.m. Tuesday.
With 81% of precincts reporting statewide, Murphy held a 56.4% to 41.9% advantage over Corey. Green Party candidate Justin Paglino polled 0.8% of the vote and unaffiliated candidate Robert Finley Hyde has 0.9%.
Murphy told his supporters relatively early Tuesday evening that while he didn’t know what the results of the election were going to be, he believed the Democratic Party had done everything it could to win.
“I am feeling in my heart that we have left it all on the table,” Murphy said. “I know that there is no effort that wasn’t spared. I am hopeful and confident whether it be tonight, tomorrow morning, or Wednesday afternoon, that Kamala Harris is going to be the next President of the United States.”
Murphy said the party is focused on improving people’s lives.
“I have seen the possibility of democracy. I have seen our work, our collective work, be able to change people’s lives. It’s why I asked the people of the state of Connecticut for a third term in the United States Senate,” Murphy said. “And tonight, I am so, so grateful to this state that means so much to me, so much to our family, for giving me the chance to continue to represent Connecticut in the United States Senate. God bless the state of Connecticut and God bless the United States.”
Hayes Re-Elected In Connecticut’s 5th District
US Rep. Jahana Hayes was named the projected winner of the race for Connecticut’s 5th Congressional District early Wednesday, defeating Republican former state Sen. George Logan, according to the Associated Press.
Hayes was leading Logan 53% to 47% as of 2:26 a.m., with 93% of precincts reporting.
Logan was still campaigning shortly before polls closed on Tuesday, criticizing Hayes’ foreign-policy record.
“We need to make sure that we stick to supporting our allies, like Israel,” Logan said. “My opponent, she kind of tries to play both sides. She’ll support funding for Israel, but then she was one of 40 members of Congress who signed a letter [asking] the Biden administration not to send the actual resources to Israel.”
Hayes dismissed Logan’s critique at later Tuesday in Waterbury, saying Logan “has no record on anything, so when he can put up some receipts on any issue, then we can compare records.”
Hayes and Logan previously faced off in the 2022 midterm election, which Hayes won by less than 1%.
The Hayes-Logan rematch had drawn the support of the Republican Party at the national level following Logan’s close loss two years ago. Logan’s campaign was advertising on television up until about two weeks ago when the Congressional Leadership Fund PAC – which had reserved $600,000 in TV ads to help Logan’s campaign down the stretch – pulled the funds in favor of other competitive districts.
Larson Holds Off Griffin To Win 14th Term
Incumbent Democrat John Larson was declared the projected winner in the 1st Congressional District early Wednesday, defeating his Republican opponent, Jim Griffin.
With over half the district’s precincts reporting after 4 a.m., Larson led Griffin 61% to 37%. Green Party candidate Mary Sanders had 2%.
Larson, who has championed efforts to protect and improve funding for Social Security from conservatives at the federal level and also campaigned in favor of reproductive rights for women, will serve his 14th term in the US House..
“Thank you to the voters of Connecticut’s First District for entrusting me with another term in Congress. It has been the honor of my life to represent you,” Larson said. “Results are still coming in, but I remain hopeful that once all of the votes are counted, Kamala Harris will win the Presidency and Democrats will take back control of the House. Together, we will continue the fight to defend women’s reproductive rights, protect and expand Social Security, and lower costs for working families.”
Himes Declared Winner In 4th District
The Associated Press called the race in the 4th Congressional District for incumbent Democrat Jim Himes early Wednesday.
With 70% of the precincts reporting, Himes had 57.2% of the vote to Republican challenger Michael Goldstein’s 41.1%. Unaffiliated candidate Benjamin Wesley had garnered 1.6% of the vote.
Himes serves as the ranking member of the House Intelligence Committee and was among the first elected officials to publicly call for President Joe Biden to drop out of the presidential race in July.
Courtney Wins 10th Term In Sprawling 2nd
Congressman Joe Courtney declares his victory over Republican challenger Mike France ahead of official state results on Tuesday, Nov. 5, 2024. Credit: Brian Scott-Smith / CTNewsJunkie
With 98% of the precincts reporting in the 63-town 2nd Congressional District that covers the eastern half of Connecticut, Congressman Joe Courtney had outpolled Republican challenger Mike France 57.9% to 42.1% with 98% of the precincts reporting.
Courtney thanked his supporters in Norwich and touted the accomplishments that he and his team had achieved over the last few years in eastern Connecticut, including the burgeoning job market in his district with 5,300 hires at the Electric Boat shipyard in 2023 and another 3,000 so far this year.
He said the ongoing work in Virginia-class submarine construction in Groton has ripple effect both in terms of other jobs in the district as well as “exciting new enterprises that we’ve been directly involved with.”
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DeLauro Wins Handily In 3rd District
Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro held out hope for a better result than she was seeing late Tuesday, with respect to Harris’ chances, but her race had been decided early.
DeLauro was declared the winner over Republican challenger Michael Massey with a 54.9% to 45.1% advantage with 67% of precincts reporting.