Democratic U.S. Rep. Jahana Hayes has won a fourth term representing Connecticut, dashing the hopes of Republicans who saw an opportunity to flip a seat in a state where they haven’t won a congressional election in 18 years.
Hayes defeated former Republican state Sen. George Logan on Tuesday in a rematch race that closely resembled their previous battle in 2022.
“You guys did this. You organized, you mobilized, you showed up, you brought your family, you brought your friends. You did this,” she told the crowd in Waterbury. “You didn’t like that number from two years ago and you opened it up. You opened it up. So thank you. Thank you for just all of your faith in me.”
Both candidates accused the other of being too cozy with their respective party leadership in Washington and not representing the everyday interests of the northwestern Connecticut district.
In their first matchup two years ago, Hayes defeated Logan by just 2,004 votes, less than 1% of the total cast.
But Hayes, the first Black woman to represent Connecticut in Congress, had the advantage this year of sharing the ballot with Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris. She had predicted it would help drive enthusiasm for down-ballot races like her own.
The race between Hayes and Logan was among the state’s most closely watched contests on an Election Day when voters also chose state legislators and reelected a U.S. senator.
Logan, the Afro-Latino son of Guatemalan immigrants, had hoped to become the first Hispanic member of Congress from Connecticut.
He focused heavily on his personal background during the campaign, even addressing voters in Spanish during a recent debate.
He also tried to portray himself as an independent thinker who would vote for legislation that suited the district, no matter which party proposed it.
“I believe Washington is broken and needs to be fixed. I want to be part of the solution,” said Logan, a mechanical engineer who now works as a community relations director for a public water supply company.
Hayes had argued that Logan could not be trusted to protect abortion rights or to buck his own party. She touted herself as a lawmaker who has delivered for the district, in both funding and legislation. Hayes also campaigned on her support for bills to lower drug prices and address gun violence.
The race was fought in a district in the northwestern part of the state where President Joe Biden defeated former President Donald Trump by 11 points in 2020.
Logan said he would vote for Trump, but he has walked a careful line on the campaign trail.
He avoided talking about the Republican presidential nominee or aligning himself with Trump’s policies and the MAGA movement. Instead, he spoke repeatedly about being focused on the needs of the district and not the contentious presidential race, pledging to be an “independent voice” who would work with whoever won the White House.
The race was mostly a reboot of 2022, with Logan even reusing some of his same advertising. He criticized Hayes for voting “with the failed Biden-Harris administration 99% of the time” and focused heavily on economic issues.
Hayes accused him of being a risk to abortion rights and siding with “extremist” Republicans in Washington. Logan said he supports abortion rights. Connecticut has been challenging territory for Republicans in recent decades. The last Republican to win a House seat representing the state was former U.S. Rep. Chris Shays, who was voted out of office in 2008.
Incumbent Democrats in the state’s other four congressional districts all won their bids for reelection. U.S. Rep. Joe Courtney, in the eastern part of the state, won a 10th term in a rematch race against former Republican state Rep. Mike France, whom he beat by 18 points two years ago. U.S. Rep. Rosa DeLauro won an 18th term; U.S. Rep. John Larson won a 14th term; and U.S. Rep. Jim Himes won a ninth term.
Sen. Chris Murphy won a third term in a rematch against Republican Matt Corey, a small business owner who has pitched himself as “the fighter Donald Trump needs by his side.” The last Republican senator from Connecticut was Lowell Weicker, who lost in 1988 and later left the party.
“I’m here to say thank you and I’m here to pledge to the state of Connecticut that in my third term, there will not be a single day that I won’t look upon this opportunity as the greatest gift of my life,” Murphy told supporters in Hartford.
All state legislators are also up for reelection this year. Democrats currently hold a two-thirds majority in the state Senate but are just short in the House of Representatives. If they secure a net gain of three House seats, without losing any Senate seats, Democrats will have a supermajority in the General Assembly needed to override a gubernatorial veto.
Susan Haigh, The Associated Press