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Elections in Connecticut

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Elections in Connecticut
Federal government
U.S President
Presidential primaries
Democratic
2000
2004
2008
2016
2020
2024
Republican
2008
2012
2016
2020
2024
U.S. Senate
U.S. House
State government
State elections
Governor
Attorney General
Secretary of the State
State Treasurer
State Comptroller
State Senate
State House
Bridgeport
Mayor
Hartford
Mayor
New Haven
Mayor
Stamford
Mayor
Waterbury
Mayoral Elections
United States presidential election results for Connecticut[1]
Year Republican / Whig Democratic Third party(ies)
No.  % No.  % No.  %
2020 715,311 39.21% 1,080,831 59.24% 28,314 1.55%
2016 673,215 40.93% 897,572 54.57% 74,133 4.51%
2012 634,899 40.72% 905,109 58.06% 18,985 1.22%
2008 629,428 38.22% 997,773 60.59% 19,592 1.19%
2004 693,826 43.95% 857,488 54.31% 27,455 1.74%
2000 561,094 38.44% 816,015 55.91% 82,416 5.65%
1996 483,109 34.69% 735,740 52.83% 173,765 12.48%
1992 578,313 35.78% 682,318 42.21% 355,701 22.01%
1988 750,241 51.98% 676,584 46.87% 16,569 1.15%
1984 890,877 60.73% 569,597 38.83% 6,426 0.44%
1980 677,210 48.16% 541,732 38.52% 187,343 13.32%
1976 719,261 52.06% 647,895 46.90% 14,370 1.04%
1972 810,763 58.57% 555,498 40.13% 18,016 1.30%
1968 556,721 44.32% 621,561 49.48% 77,950 6.21%
1964 390,996 32.09% 826,269 67.81% 1,313 0.11%
1960 565,813 46.27% 657,055 53.73% 15 0.00%
1956 711,837 63.72% 405,079 36.26% 205 0.02%
1952 611,012 55.70% 481,649 43.91% 4,250 0.39%
1948 437,754 49.55% 423,297 47.91% 22,467 2.54%
1944 390,527 46.94% 435,146 52.30% 6,317 0.76%
1940 361,819 46.30% 417,621 53.44% 2,062 0.26%
1936 278,685 40.35% 382,129 55.32% 29,909 4.33%
1932 288,420 48.54% 281,632 47.40% 24,131 4.06%
1928 296,641 53.63% 252,085 45.57% 4,398 0.80%
1924 246,322 61.54% 110,184 27.53% 43,789 10.94%
1920 229,238 62.72% 120,721 33.03% 15,559 4.26%
1916 106,514 49.80% 99,786 46.66% 7,574 3.54%
1912 68,324 35.88% 74,561 39.16% 47,519 24.96%
1908 112,915 59.43% 68,255 35.92% 8,833 4.65%
1904 111,089 58.12% 72,909 38.15% 7,130 3.73%
1900 102,572 56.92% 74,014 41.07% 3,609 2.00%
1896 110,285 63.24% 56,740 32.54% 7,365 4.22%
1892 77,032 46.80% 82,395 50.06% 5,168 3.14%
1888 74,584 48.44% 74,920 48.66% 4,474 2.91%
1884 65,898 48.01% 67,182 48.95% 4,177 3.04%
1880 67,071 50.51% 64,411 48.50% 1,316 0.99%
1876 59,033 48.33% 61,927 50.70% 1,174 0.96%
1872 50,314 52.41% 45,695 47.59% 0 0.00%
1868 50,788 51.49% 47,844 48.51% 0 0.00%
1864 44,693 51.38% 42,288 48.62% 0 0.00%
1860 43,486 53.86% 17,364 21.50% 19,895 24.64%
1856 42,717 53.18% 34,997 43.57% 2,615 3.26%
1852 30,359 45.46% 33,249 49.79% 3,173 4.75%
1848 30,318 48.59% 27,051 43.35% 5,029 8.06%
1844 32,832 50.81% 29,841 46.18% 1,943 3.01%
1840 31,598 55.55% 25,281 44.45% 0 0.00%
1836 18,799 49.35% 19,294 50.65% 0 0.00%

Various kinds of elections in Connecticut occurs annually in each of the state's cities and towns, the exact type of which is dependent on the year. Elections for federal and statewide offices occur in even-numbered years, while municipal elections occur in odd-numbered ones. The office of the Connecticut Secretary of State oversees the election process, including voting and vote counting.[2] In a 2020 study, Connecticut was ranked as the 20th easiest state for citizens to vote in.[3]

Historically, Connecticut was a bastion of Republicanism, although this was typically a liberal "Yankee" brand of the Republican Party. From the Civil War to the 1990s, the state voted Republican all but nine times on the presidential level. It only voted Democratic in the elections of 1876, 1888, 1912, 1936, 1940, 1944, 1960, 1964, and 1968. However, since the 1992 election, the state has voted Democratic every time, and since 1996, it has been by double-digit margins. [4]

However, Democrats have controlled the state legislature for all but 13 years since 1959 and have held both Senate seats since 1989, as no Republican has won a Senate seat in the state since 1982. Every seat in the House of Representatives is held by a Democrat, with the last Republican having lost in 2008. That election marked the first time since the 1850s that no Republican represented Connecticut or any state in New England region in the House.[5][6]

Offices elected by the people of Connecticut

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Federal

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State

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  • Governor and Lieutenant Governor: The governor and lieutenant governor are elected to four-year terms in the next even-year election cycle that follows a presidential election. The governor and lieutenant governor are elected on the same ballot line, though they run separately in primary elections. The current governor of Connecticut is Ned Lamont, a Democrat who took office in 2019. His lieutenant is Susan Bysiewicz.
  • Constitutional Officers: The Constitutional Officers of the state are composed of the state Attorney General, Secretary of the State, Comptroller, and Treasurer. All are elected to four-year terms in the same cycle as gubernatorial elections. The incumbent four officers are all members of the Democratic Party.
  • General Assembly: The Connecticut General Assembly is the state's bicameral state legislature. It is composed of two houses:
    • Connecticut Senate: The Connecticut Senate is the upper house of the state legislature. There are 36 senatorial districts in the state, each of which elects one member to the Senate. The full Senate is up for election every two years. The most recent election was held on November 8, 2022.
    • Connecticut House of Representatives: The Connecticut House of Representatives is the lower house of the state legislature. There are 151 assembly districts in the state, each of which elects one member to the House. The full House is up for election every two years. The most recent election was held on November 8, 2022.
  • Others
    • Judges of Probate: Judges of Probate are the only elected members of the judicial branch of government in Connecticut. Judges hold office for a period of four years, their election is held at the same time as gubernatorial elections. The jurisdiction of probate judges extends to the legal affairs of the deceased, some aspects of family law, conservatorship, and other matters.[8] The most recent elections for probate judges were held on November 3, 2020.
    • Registrars of Voters: Connecticut state law mandates that each city and town in the state elect one Registrar of Voters from each of the two "major" parties (currently the Democratic and Republican parties) to serve as election administrators and to handle various other election-related affairs in their respective municipality.[9] A third party registrar may be elected in addition to the required Republican and Democrat if such candidate receives more votes than either the Republican or Democratic nominee. This has only happened twice in state history when it occurred in Hartford in 2008[10] and 2012.[11] The term length and year of election of registrars differs among the state's municipalities.

Local

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Elections for local government include elections for municipal leadership positions (such as mayor or first selectman), legislative bodies (such as a city council or a board of aldermen), and other elections for various municipal positions and boards and commissions, as governed by each municipality's respective charter and/or ordinances. Of the 169 towns and cities in the state, all hold municipal elections in odd-numbered years, and most hold them on the traditional Election Day in November. Fifteen[12] communities in the state, however, hold their municipal elections in May.

Unlike in most U.S. states, there is no form of county government in Connecticut. The eight counties in the state now exist solely for geographical purposes. Governing at the county level was abolished in the state in 1960, and its last holdover, county sheriffs, were eliminated by an amendment to the state constitution in 2000.

Party affiliation in Connecticut

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The majority of Connecticut voters are affiliated with either of the two major political parties, but the plurality of voters have no party affiliation.

The state of Connecticut has a closed primary system, whereby only electors enrolled in a political party can vote in their party's primary election. A registered Republican, for example, is only allowed to participate in Republican primaries, while a voter not affiliated with any political party (called an “unaffiliated” voter in the state) is not allowed to vote in any party primary.

Party registration as of November 1, 2022 [13]
Party Total voters Percentage
Unaffiliated 1,033,470 41.76%
Democratic 898,303 36.3%
Republican 502,482 20.3%
Minor parties 40,143 1.62%
Total 2,474,398 100%

Recent election results

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Federal

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State

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Other voter responsibilities

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Connecticut has no system of initiative or referendums at the statewide level, but any proposed amendment to the state constitution, after having first been passed by both houses of the state legislature in accordance with Article XII of the Connecticut Constitution, must be ratified by the people of the state via a ballot question. Additionally, in accordance with Article XIII, every 20 years (or 20 years after a constitutional convention was last called for) citizens of the state shall be allowed to vote on whether a constitutional convention to amend or revise the state constitution should be called.

Constitutional Question 1
November 8, 2022 (2022-11-08)
Results
Choice
 Votes %
Yes 694,833 60.56%
No 452,453 39.44%
Municipal results
Yes:      50–60%      60–70%      70–80%      80–90%
No:      50–60%      60–70%

The most recent constitutional amendment proposition was Question 1 in 2022 which allowed the legislature to create a period of early voting for elections in the state of Connecticut. [14] and it passed 60.5% to 39.5%. The most recent constitutional convention question appeared on the ballot on November 4, 2008, and the call for a convention was rejected 847,518 to 579,904.

While there is no statewide initiative or referendums, many municipalities have some form of it for issues of local concern. Additionally, five municipalities[15] afford voters the right to recall local elected public officials, a practice that does not extend to state offices.[16]

Filling U.S. Senate vacancies

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On June 26, 2009, Connecticut Governor M. Jodi Rell signed into law a bill that requires that a special election be called under most circumstances should a vacancy occur in either of Connecticut's two U.S. Senate seats.[17] Prior to this law, the governor of the state had the right to appoint a replacement to fill such vacancies.

Since passed, this law has not yet been used.

See also

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References

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  1. ^ Leip, David. "Presidential General Election Results Comparison – Connecticut". US Election Atlas. Retrieved October 29, 2022.
  2. ^ Dionne Searcey (October 1, 2020), "When Your Job Is to Make Sure Nov. 3 Isn't a Disaster", Nytimes.com
  3. ^ J. Pomante II, Michael; Li, Quan (December 15, 2020). "Cost of Voting in the American States: 2020". Election Law Journal: Rules, Politics, and Policy. 19 (4): 503–509. doi:10.1089/elj.2020.0666. S2CID 225139517.
  4. ^ "Connecticut Presidential Election Voting History - 270toWin".
  5. ^ Susan Haigh (November 9, 2008). "G.O.P. a Dying Breed in New England". USA Today. Retrieved April 18, 2014.
  6. ^ Jon Lender & Mark Pazniokas (November 5, 2008). "Jim Himes Defeats Christopher Shays in 4th District". The Hartford Courant. Retrieved April 18, 2014.
  7. ^ "Connecticut Election Results". The New York Times. November 3, 2020.
  8. ^ "Probate Court Jurisdiction". State of Connecticut – Judicial Branch. Archived from the original on June 17, 2010. Retrieved June 24, 2010.
  9. ^ "Chapter 146* Elections". Archived from the original on January 20, 2013. Retrieved November 8, 2012.
  10. ^ "Bysiewicz Swears In First-Ever Third Party Registrar of Voters Elected in Connecticut" (PDF). Office of the Connecticut Secretary of the State. January 7, 2009. Archived from the original (PDF) on October 14, 2012. Retrieved June 24, 2010.
  11. ^ "Connecticut Public Radio - Media for the curious". www.yourpublicmedia.org.
  12. ^ "Winners of Elections for Mayor, First Selectman or Warden - Monday, May 2, 2005" (PDF). Office of the Connecticut Secretary of the State. Retrieved June 24, 2010.
  13. ^ "Statistics and Data" (PDF). Portal.ct.gov. Archived from the original on February 27, 2021. Retrieved January 16, 2023.
  14. ^ "Connecticut Question 1, Allow for Early Voting Amendment (2022)". Ballotpedia. Retrieved February 13, 2023.
  15. ^ McCready, Brian (June 16, 2010). "Parents aim to oust Milford board member". NHRegister.com. Retrieved June 24, 2010.
  16. ^ "Paul Newman Could Become Westport Selectman in Recall Election". WestportNow.com. August 10, 2003. Retrieved June 24, 2010.
  17. ^ Office of the Governor (June 26, 2009). "Gov. Rell Signs Bill Requiring Elections to Fill U.S. Senate Vacancies". Ct.gov. Retrieved June 24, 2010.
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