The 2004 United States Senate election in Connecticut took place on November 2, 2004, alongside other elections to the United States Senate in other states as well as elections to the United States House of Representatives and various state and local elections. Incumbent Democrat U.S. Senator Chris Dodd won re-election for a fifth term.
The Republican nominee, Jack Orchulli, ran as fiscal conservative and social moderate.[citation needed] He broke ranks with his party on gay marriage and abortion.[3] He often talked about a "broken education system." He argued that Dodd hasn't done anything in his 30 years in Congress to fix such issues as traffic problems in Fairfield County.[4]
Orchulli launched a statewide TV ad campaign in September, as he spent over $1.1 million and pledged to spend "whatever it takes" if polls showed that he was gaining ground on Dodd.[5]
