Democratic Gov. Ned Lamont has been re-elected to a third term, easily defeating Ryan Fazio, a Republican state senator.
The Associated Press called the race around 9:15 p.m.
In his victory speech, Lamont echoed some of the economic themes from his campaign.
“It doesn’t work, this economy, unless it works for everybody. And right now there are too many people getting left behind," Lamont told supporters. "The middle class is getting slammed. You’re working harder and harder and you’re having a harder time getting by. That’s our pledge ... fighting every day to make this life a little easier for you, a little more affordable, and a little fairer for each and every one of you.”
Fazio said he and other Republicans faced a rough political climate.
“I hope we summoned some sense of hope and faith in our process and in our cause,” Fazio told supporters.
Democrats were in the lead in all statewide races: lieutenant governor, secretary of the state, treasurer, comptroller and attorney general.
And in the state legislature, Democrats grew what was already a supermajority in Connecticut.
Democrats also had significant leads in each of Connecticut's five U.S. House districts.
Connecticut's congressional delegation will include a new member: Luke Bronin, a Democrat. The former Hartford mayor had a significant lead in the 1st Congressional District over Republican Amy Chai.
“It’s pretty clear that the American people – all across the country – have sent a powerful message that they are done with cruelty, chaos, corruption, and incompetence,” Bronin said.
CT Democrats celebrate strong performance
Democrats are maintaining their hold on both chambers of the state legislature. And they’re already looking toward the party’s future.
Connecticut Democratic Party Chair Roberto Alves says state lawmakers are thinking about the cost of living going into the next legislative session.
"People want to talk about how we're going to make life more affordable," he said. "How are we going to make sure we're investing in things like public safety? But more importantly, how are we going to invest in things like education?”
Alves is reminding newly elected or re-elected lawmakers to keep in mind the promises they made to voters.
—Abigail Brone
CT Republicans think about the future
Fazio, the Republican gubernatorial candidate, said it’s too soon to say if he’d run for governor again.
He did say that in order to win, the local Republican party will need to be rebuilt. He says the GOP has lost resources over the last decade, and he says that’s bad for both parties.
“I would argue that the reason Connecticut is so deeply unaffordable and economically stagnant, is because it’s lacked the political competition," Fazio said. "So I think Democrats and Republicans across the state should want the Republican party in Connecticut to be strong.”
Chris Shea, the Republican candidate in the 5th Congressional District, said that infighting among Republicans is not good.
"We should learn to play well together and work well to get things accomplished," he said.
Shea said he gained a lot of insight by running, including knowing more about the issues that matter to residents.
"I think we got some issues on the table," Shea said. "I think we got people excited about a race for a change here in this district in this area."
— Matt Dwyer and Frankie Graziano
Voting going smoothly, officials say
Polls closed Tuesday with no significant issues.
State election officials said voting ran smoothly and there were only a few minor issues in Connecticut, including a fire alarm going off at a polling location and issues with tabulators.
Secretary of the State Stephanie Thomas said a person died at a Killingly polling location, although the death was unrelated to the election. Connecticut State Police said that an unconscious person was found around 5:15 a.m. at the Westfield Avenue polling location, and that there was "no ongoing threat" to the public.
State officials had not received any complaints as of Tuesday afternoon about Department of Justice monitors at New Haven polling places.
The FBI's New Haven office published a social media post with incorrect information about the date of the election. The agency took the post down after identifying what it called a typo, an FBI spokesperson said.
"My message to voters is: Please don't worry. We've got this covered," Thomas said at a morning press conference. "Elections will be safe and secure here in the state of Connecticut.”
— Isabelle Marceles
Voter tried to vote twice in Madison
State officials say a person reportedly attempted to vote twice in Madison on Sunday.
Deputy Secretary of the State Jennifer Barahona says the person was caught and the incident was reported to the State Elections Enforcement Commission.
“Attempting to test the system by voting twice is not a harmless experiment," Barahona said Tuesday afternoon. "Voting more than once is voter fraud and it is illegal.”
A spokesperson says the commission can’t comment on any complaint unless it opens an investigation.
— Isabelle Marceles
Federal monitors in New Haven
Federal election monitors were spotted outside polling stations in New Haven Tuesday.
Four monitors were sent to New Haven by the Trump administration to observe compliance with federal voting rights laws, asking people if materials were available in English and Spanish.
Voter Jeremy Anderson noticed an election monitor outside his polling location in Westville.
"He just stood there with his notepad, and he was being screamed at by a man who was obviously angry," Anderson said. "I'm enraged myself about what's going on in this country right now. But I'm not going to turn it on a citizen."
New Haven's Democratic and Republican registrars of voters denied federal monitors access to polling places, citing state law and concerns about voter intimidation and efforts to undermine public confidence in elections.
The Department of Justice sent approximately 1,000 election monitors across all 50 states — the largest deployment in the department’s history. Federal officials say the monitors are checking for compliance with the federal voting rights statutes that fall within the department's Civil Rights Division.
Assistant Attorney General Harmeet K. Dhillon said in a statement that she was proud of the department's efforts in "pursuing transparency for elections in an assertive and nondiscriminatory manner.”
Laura Cahn is the Democratic ward co-chair for Ward 26 in New Haven. She spent the day greeting voters outside a polling station in Westville, where she saw a federal election monitor at 6:30 a.m.
Cahn said the election monitor asked voters if materials inside and outside the station were available in English and Spanish. But she worried the man's presence felt like an invasion of privacy to voters.
"We want everyone to feel like their vote is confidential and that they are absolutely free to vote, and this is their right," Cahn said. "And we don't want anyone to stop to make people stop and wonder if people are watching them."
—Áine Pennello
Sending federal monitors to CT is rare, professor says
State officials say they don't know exactly where in New Haven the federal monitors will be.
Under state law, federal observers aren't allowed inside polling places.
Local officials received notice last week and quickly pushed back. New Haven's Democratic and Republican registrars of voters say they're worried rhetoric and actions by the federal government are intended to cast doubt on election integrity and intimidate voters.
The Department of Justice told the city the monitors will not have the authority to arrest or detain anyone, and that they will remain outside a 75-foot zone established by state law.
"Thousands of New Haveners have already cast their ballot in this year’s election, and voters should continue to feel comfortable and confident going to the polls," New Haven Mayor Justin Elicker said in a statement.
John Pavia, a professor at Quinnipiac University, says the federal action is out of the ordinary for a state like Connecticut.
"Historically, these monitors most often would be sent to districts and states down south where there were issues of intimidation and fishy voter rolls, not places like Connecticut," Pavia said. "So that much is somewhat rare."
— Maysoon Khan
Across CT, voters line up early to cast ballots
Voters across Connecticut cast their ballots Tuesday morning with a lot on their minds.
Cindy Emilia voted in East Hartford. Healthcare affordability is one of her top concerns. She said she hopes that her vote will make a difference at the federal level.
“My grandmother’s prescriptions through Medicare, not everything is covered, she doesn’t qualify for Medicaid – she makes too much – and her prescriptions are like $300 a month,” Emilia said. “In this economy she can’t afford that. Now she has to pick between her groceries and getting her prescriptions and I think that’s ridiculous.”
Denisse Luciano voted in Manchester Tuesday morning, along with her daughter. She founded the nonprofit F.L.Y. — First Love Yourself — for domestic violence survivors. Luciano said federal funding cuts are hurting the people she serves.
“I'm getting a lot of people referred to me that are now homeless or that are trying to leave dangerous situations," Luciano said. "There's no funding to be able to provide them shelter. Food. They need mental health. Mental health is one of the biggest issues that we see nowadays and funding's being cut across the board for all of that.”
Luciana’s daughter, Destiny Mateo, 22, said it was her second time voting – the first was in the previous general election.
“Our generation is next to represent our country,” she said. “We are privileged to have a vote, so we can put the right people in the right places.”
Hartford resident Cassie Volcy was at the polls at Hartford Public Library within an hour of it opening.
"I felt like I needed to fulfill my civic duty. I know that people before me have fought to vote so I felt the need to come out," Volcy said.
Teacher Lauren Perrault cast her ballot in Hartford with her young son at her side before heading to work.
"I've lived in Hartford for maybe 15 years and it's just important to be a part of the voting process and to take part in our community," she said.
John Wisniewski, owner of Payless Auto Glass in Connecticut and Massachusetts, voted in Glastonbury.
He said many of his workers can no longer afford their healthcare premiums for plans on the state health exchange after Congress failed to extend premium tax credits.
"I voted for Trump," he said. "But taking away the affordable health care, and not giving anything else in return, I don't think was really a good idea."
The White House has argued a sweeping budget bill passed last year helps Americans by making tax cuts and a small business deduction permanent.
Wisniewski said his business took on additional costs to be able to provide workers with alternate healthcare.
In Portland, early voting kept Election Day quick and easy for in-person voters.
"Of our 6,800 voters, over 1,700 voted early," said Election Moderator Anita Carpene. "So it really is an asset. It went very very smoothly."
Early voting opened Oct. 19 and closed Nov. 1.
More than 500,000 Connecticut voters cast ballots leading up to Election Day. About 455,000 ballots were cast during early voting, while more than 50,000 absentee mail-in ballots were submitted. West Hartford, Norwalk and Fairfield were the cities with the most early votes cast.
Corey Hill, an IT specialist at the Community Health Center in Middletown, cast his ballot Tuesday afternoon at the center, a polling station.
Hill said he was concerned with federal cuts to healthcare under the One Big Beautiful Bill.
"I think there should be more funding in a way for everyone to be able to get seen," he said. "I hope that with the vote I made today will benefit the community health center and all the patients that come here."
Community health centers across the country are bracing for more patients as federal changes to Medicaid work requirements go into effect next year.
— Sujata Srinivasan
Protecting elections with 'multiple layers of security'
State election officials say they have been working to ensure voting is secure. Officials have added video monitoring to drop box sites and spent $20 million in voting tabulators.
"In Connecticut, we have always protected elections with multiple layers of security, including the statewide use of paper ballots, rigorous post-election audits, and clear procedures to track and verify ballots," the secretary of the state's office said in its voters guide. "Connecticut will continue to safeguard election integrity and protect the processes that have served our state well for generations."
CT's Democrats have high hopes for Congressional seats
Democrats were poised to hang onto all five of Connecticut’s seats, and the state's Congressional delegation will gain influence now that Democrats won the U.S. House.
U.S. Rep. DeLauro – who was elected to a 19th term in Congress – could return as chair of the House Appropriations Committee, while U.S. Rep. Jim Himes could become chair of the Intelligence Committee. In those potential roles, they said they’d focus on oversight of the Trump administration.
— Lisa Hagen
Connecticut Public's Isabelle Marceles, Sujata Srinivasan, Maysoon Khan, Áine Pennello, Lisa Hagen, Abigail Brone, Matt Dwyer and Eric Aasen contributed to this report.
