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Against the backdrop of next Tuesday’s statewide primaries, contenders for the Secretary of the State nomination ramped up their discourse on election integrity, while Democratic Gov. Ned Lamont and Republican challenger Bob Stefanowski continued to focus on core issues of jobs and crime, voicing predictably divergent views on the status of both.
And according to the latest predictions from a well-known national political website, Democrats look poised to win in several prominent races.
“A single week’s worth of headlines tells the story; our state is becoming less safe every day. CT needs better leadership to support our law enforcement, to enforce our current laws, and to foster an environment that empowers individuals.”
— Social media post from Stefanowski, who also called on Lamont to improve living and working conditions in state prisons for inmates and correction officers.
“Leadership means taking on tough problems with a rational, fact-based approach. Gov Ned Lamont has dedicated resources to public safety and signed major legislation to reduce and PREVENT crime.”
— State Democratic Party’s social media post on behalf of Lamont, who held a roundtable in Waterbury to promote what he called “Four More Years of Gun Safety in CT.”
“I’m running for Secretary of the State because in these unprecedented times, we need experienced leadership ready to fight to protect our democracy. We need to restore fiscal autonomy to the Office so we can be proactive, expand access to voting with multi-faceted inclusive policies and multilingual educational campaigns to combat misinformation, and revitalize the small and minority business unit to make it easier for small businesses to launch, innovate and thrive.”
— Statement by Democratic candidate for Secretary of the State Maritza Bond, now Director of Health for the city of New Haven.
“As Secretary of the State, my job would be ensuring voter rights are protected and that our elections are properly and fairly conducted – maybe one of the most important jobs in our democracy today. I am honored to have earned the support of Democrats from across the state who know firsthand the challenges the next Secretary of the State will face, and believe I can do the job.”
— Announcement by State Rep. Stephanie Thomas, the party-backed Democrat for Secretary of the State, that she has been endorsed by 128 state, legislative, municipal and Democratic leaders and town committees.
“There’s nothing more important than protecting your right to vote. I will always stand up to flawed policies that put your vote in jeopardy. I will always fight to ensure free, fair, and transparent elections.”
— Statement by State Rep. Terrie Wood, vying for the Republican nomination for Secretary of the State.
“Att: Fraud Deniers: A classic case of Voter Fraud – abuse of absentee ballots, cheating politicians, a city clerk who was at best sloppy, at worst colluding with political operatives. Election Integrity is not negotiable.”
— Social media post by the other Republican candidate for the nomination, Dominic Rapini, citing a CT Examiner story about the trial of the one-time Democratic Party chair of Stamford on 28 counts of forgery and filing false statements in absentee balloting in the 2015 election.
“18 straight months of job growth! The Connecticut comeback continues.”
— Lamont’s social media post on Department of Labor statistics showing state employers added an estimated 1,700 jobs in June.
“Under @CTDEMS leadership, Connecticut still has less jobs than before the 2008-10 recession. Dems have failed CT. Time to VOTE REPUBLICAN.”
— State Republican Party’s social media post.
“Lamont is clearly favored to win. Blumenthal is clearly favored to win. Courtney is favored to win. Hayes is slightly favored to win.”
— Analysis by the national political website FiveThirtyEight on Connecticut’s closely-watched races for Governor and the seats now held by incumbent Democrats U.S. Senator Richard Blumenthal and U.S. Congressmen Joe Courtney and Jahana Hayes.