The 2018 Connecticut gubernatorial election took place on November 6, 2018, to elect the next

governor A governor is an politician, administrative leader and head of a polity or Region#Political regions, political region, in some cases, such as governor-general, governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the ...

and

lieutenant governor of Connecticut The lieutenant governor of Connecticut is the second highest executive officer of the government of the U.S. State of Connecticut. The lieutenant governor acts as President of the State Senate, presiding over the Senate and casting votes in the ...

, concurrently with the

election An election is a formal group decision-making process whereby a population chooses an individual or multiple individuals to hold Public administration, public office. Elections have been the usual mechanism by which modern representative d ...

of Connecticut's Class I U.S. Senate seat, as well as other elections to the United States Senate in other states, elections to the United States House of Representatives, and various

state State most commonly refers to: * State (polity), a centralized political organization that regulates law and society within a territory **Sovereign state, a sovereign polity in international law, commonly referred to as a country **Nation state, a ...

and

local elections Local may refer to: Geography and transportation * Local (train), a train serving local traffic demand * Local, Missouri, a community in the United States Arts, entertainment, and media * ''Local'' (comics), a limited series comic book by Bria ...

. This race's Democratic margin of victory was the closest to the national average of 3.1 points. (It was 0.1 point more Democratic.) As Connecticut does not have gubernatorial term limits, incumbent Democratic governor

Dannel Malloy Dannel Patrick Malloy (; born July 21, 1955) is an American politician who served as the 88th governor of Connecticut from 2011 to 2019. A member of the Democratic Party, he chaired the Democratic Governors Association from 2016 to 2017. In Ju ...

was eligible to run for a third term, but declined to do so. After the resignation of Kansas governor

Sam Brownback Samuel Dale Brownback (born September 12, 1956) is an American attorney, politician, and diplomat who served as a United States Senate, United States senator from Kansas from 1996 to 2011 and as the List of governors of Kansas, 46th governor of K ...

in January 2018, Malloy became the most unpopular governor in the United States. The general election was between

2006 2006 was designated as the International Year of Deserts and Desertification. Events January * January 1– 4 – Russia temporarily cuts shipment of natural gas to Ukraine during a price dispute. * January 12 – A stampede during t ...

Democratic U.S. Senate nominee

Ned Lamont Edward Miner Lamont Jr. ( ; born January 3, 1954) is an American businessman and politician serving since 2019 as the 89th governor of Connecticut. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, he served as a Greenwich, Con ...

, and Republican financial executive Bob Stefanowski. Independent candidate and former Republican Oz Griebel has been called a

spoiler candidate In social choice theory and politics, a spoiler effect happens when a losing candidate affects the results of an election simply by participating. Voting rules that are not affected by spoilers are said to be spoilerproof. The frequency and se ...

for Stefanowski, earning 3.89% of the vote.

Democratic primary

Governor

Democratic nominee

, former

Greenwich Greenwich ( , , ) is an List of areas of London, area in south-east London, England, within the Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county of Greater London, east-south-east of Charing Cross. Greenwich is notable for its maritime hi ...

selectman, nominee for the U.S. Senate in

and candidate for governor of Connecticut in

2010 The year saw a multitude of natural and environmental disasters such as the 2010 Haiti earthquake, the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, and the 2010 Chile earthquake. The 2009 swine flu pandemic, swine flu pandemic which began the previous year ...

(endorsed by the state party)

Lost the Democratic primary

Joe Ganim Joseph Peter Ganim (born October 21, 1959) is an American Democratic politician and former attorney who is the mayor of Bridgeport, Connecticut. He was elected mayor of the city six times, serving from 1991 to 2003, when he resigned after being ...

mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a Municipal corporation, municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilitie ...

Bridgeport Bridgeport is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Connecticut and the fifth-most populous city in New England, with a population of 148,654 in 2020. Located in eastern Fairfield County at the mouth of the Pequonnock River on Long Is ...

and nominee for

lieutenant governor A lieutenant governor, lieutenant-governor, or vice governor is a high officer of state, whose precise role and rank vary by jurisdiction. Often a lieutenant governor is the deputy, or lieutenant, to or ranked under a governor — a "second-in-comm ...

1994 The year 1994 was designated as the " International Year of the Family" and the "International Year of Sport and the Olympic Ideal" by the United Nations. In the Line Islands and Phoenix Islands of Kiribati, 1994 had only 364 days, omitti ...

Withdrew prior to the Democratic primary

Susan Bysiewicz Susan Bysiewicz ( ; born September 29, 1961) is an American politician and attorney who has served as the 109th lieutenant governor of Connecticut since 2019. She previously served as the 72nd secretary of the state of Connecticut from 1999 to 2 ...

Secretary of the State of Connecticut The secretary of the state of Connecticut is one of the constitutional officers of the U.S. state of Connecticut. (The definite article is part of the legal job title.) It is an elected position in the state government and has a term length of four ...

from 1999 to 2011 and candidate for the

U.S. Senate The United States Senate is a chamber of the bicameral United States Congress; it is the upper house, with the U.S. House of Representatives being the lower house. Together, the Senate and House have the authority under Article One of the ...

2012 2012 was designated as: *International Year of Cooperatives *International Year of Sustainable Energy for All Events January *January 4 – The Cicada 3301 internet hunt begins. * January 12 – Peaceful protests begin in the R ...

(running for lieutenant governor of Connecticut; endorsed Lamont) * Sean Connolly, former state commissioner for Veterans' Affairs (endorsed Lamont) * Dan Drew, mayor of Middletown *

Jonathan Harris Jonathan Daniel Harris ( Charasuchin; November 6, 1914 – November 3, 2002) was an American character actor whose career included more than 500 television and film appearances, as well as Voice-over, voiceovers. Two of his best-known roles we ...

, former mayor of

West Hartford West Hartford is a town in Hartford County, Connecticut, United States, west of downtown Hartford. The town is part of the Capitol Planning Region. The population was 64,083 at the 2020 census. The town's popular downtown area is colloquiall ...

and former Connecticut state senator (endorsed Lamont) * Guy L. Smith, businessman

Declined

* Dita Bhargava, former hedge fund manager and former vice chair of the

Democratic Party of Connecticut The Connecticut Democratic State Central Committee (CT Dems) is the affiliate of the Democratic Party in the state of Connecticut. Its chair is Roberto L. Alves. It is the dominant party in the state. Connecticut Democrats control both chambers ...

(ran for Treasurer of Connecticut) * Luke Bronin, mayor of

Hartford Hartford is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Connecticut. The city, located in Hartford County, Connecticut, Hartford County, had a population of 121,054 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 ce ...

since 2015 * Joe Courtney, U.S. representative since 2007 (ran for reelection) * Elizabeth Esty, U.S. representative since 2013 (retiring) *

Toni Harp Toni Nathaniel Harp (born August 6, 1947) is an American politician who served as the 50th List of mayors of New Haven, Connecticut, Mayor of New Haven, Connecticut. Harp, a Democratic Party (United States), Democrat, was previously a state senato ...

Mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a Municipal corporation, municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilitie ...

New Haven New Haven is a city of the U.S. state of Connecticut. It is located on New Haven Harbor on the northern shore of Long Island Sound. With a population of 135,081 as determined by the 2020 U.S. census, New Haven is the third largest city in Co ...

since 2013 (endorsed Lamont) *

Jim Himes James Andrew Himes (born July 5, 1966) is an American businessman and politician serving as the United States House of Representatives, U.S. representative for since 2009. Himes is a member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Pa ...

, U.S. representative since 2009 (ran for reelection) * George Jepsen,

Attorney General of Connecticut The Connecticut attorney general is the state attorney general of Connecticut Connecticut ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the ...

since 2011 (retired) * Edward M. Kennedy Jr., state senator and member of the

Kennedy family The Kennedy family () is an American political family that has long been prominent in American politics, public service, entertainment, and business. In 1884, 35 years after the family's arrival from County Wexford, Ireland, Patrick Joseph "P ...

(retired) *

John Larson John Barry Larson (born July 22, 1948) is an American politician and businessman serving as the U.S. representative for since 1999. The district is based in the state capital, Hartford. A member of the Democratic Party, Larson chaired the Hou ...

, U.S. representative since 1999 (ran for reelection; endorsed Lamont) * Kevin Lembo, State Comptroller of Connecticut since 2011 (ran for reelection) * Martin Looney, state senator, president pro tempore of the

Connecticut Senate The Connecticut State Senate is the upper house of the Connecticut General Assembly, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Connecticut. The state senate comprises 36 members, each representing a district with around 99,280 inhabitants. Se ...

* Dan Malloy, governor of Connecticut since 2011 (retired) * Rudy Marconi, Ridgefield first selectman * Chris Mattei, attorney and former federal prosecutor (ran for attorney general) * Nancy Wyman, lieutenant governor of Connecticut since 2011 (retired)

Primary endorsements

Results

Lieutenant governor

Democratic nominee

, former

and candidate for the

(endorsed by the state party)

Lost the Democratic primary

* Eva Bermúdez Zimmerman, activist

Withdrew

* Liz Linehan, state representative * Drew Marzullo,

selectman * Charlie Stallworth, state representative

Results

Republican primary

Governor

Republican nominee

* Bob Stefanowski, financial executive

Endorsed by the state party; lost the Republican primary

* Mark Boughton, mayor of Danbury, nominee for

and candidate for governor in

2014 The year 2014 was marked by the surge of the Western African Ebola epidemic, West African Ebola epidemic, which began in 2013, becoming the List of Ebola outbreaks, most widespread outbreak of the Ebola, Ebola virus in human history, resul ...

(endorsed by the state party)

Lost the Republican primary

* Tim Herbst, former first selectman of Trumbull and nominee for state treasurer in

* Stephen A. Obsitnik, businessman and nominee for CT-04 in 2012 * David Stemerman, businessman

Eliminated at convention

* Mike Handler, Stamford Director of Administration * Mark Lauretti, mayor of Shelton and candidate for governor and lieutenant governor in

(endorsed Stefanowski) * Peter Lumaj, attorney and nominee for secretary of state in 2014 (endorsed Stefanowski) * Prasad Srinivasan, state representative (endorsed Herbst) * David M. Walker, former United States Comptroller General and candidate for lieutenant governor in 2014 (endorsed Stefanowski)

Withdrew prior to convention

* Erin Stewart, mayor of

New Britain New Britain () is the largest island in the Bismarck Archipelago, part of the Islands Region of Papua New Guinea. It is separated from New Guinea by a northwest corner of the Solomon Sea (or with an island hop of Umboi Island, Umboi the Dampie ...

(ran for

) * Peter Thalheim, attorney and builder * Joe Visconti, former

councilman and independent candidate for governor in 2014 (ran for

)

Declined

* Toni Boucher, state senator * Len Fasano, state senator, president pro tempore of the

* Tom Foley, former

U.S. Ambassador to Ireland The United States ambassador to Ireland is the ambassador extraordinary and plenipotentiary from the United States of America to Ireland. It is considered a highly prestigious position within the United States Foreign Service. The role is curre ...

and nominee for governor in

and

* Tony Hwang, state senator * Rob Kane, Auditor of Public Accounts and former state senator * Themis Klarides, Minority Leader of the

Connecticut House of Representatives The Connecticut House of Representatives is the lower house in the Connecticut General Assembly, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Connecticut. The house is composed of 151 members representing an equal number of districts, with each ...

* Joe Markley, state senator (running for

) * John P. McKinney, former state senator and candidate for governor in

Convention

The Republican statewide nominating convention was held May 11–12, 2018 at

Foxwoods Resort Casino Foxwoods Resort Casino is an integrated resort owned and operated by the Mashantucket Pequot Tribal Nation on their Indian reservation, reservation located in Ledyard, Connecticut. Including six casinos, the resort covers an area of . The casino ...

Ledyard, Connecticut Ledyard ( ) is a New England town, Town in New London County, Connecticut, New London County, Connecticut, United States, located along the Thames River (Connecticut), Thames River. The town is named after Colonel William Ledyard, a American Revol ...

. Under the rules established by the convention, any candidate not receiving at least eight percent of the vote would be eliminated in the first round of voting. In the second round of voting, candidates not receiving 15 percent of the vote would be eliminated. In all subsequent rounds of voting, the candidate with the fewest votes would be eliminated, regardless of percentage. Voting would continue until one candidate receives 50 percent plus one of all votes cast.

Results at the convention

Primary endorsements

Polling

Results

Lieutenant governor

Republican nominee

* Joe Markley, state senator

Lost the Republican primary

* Jayme Stevenson, Darien first selectman * Erin Stewart, mayor of

Withdrew

* Ann Brookes, attorney * Peter Tesei, Greenwich first selectman

Endorsements

Results

Independent

Candidates

Declared

* Oz Griebel, businessman and Republican candidate for governor in

**Running mate: Monte Frank, former president of the Connecticut Bar Association.

Declined

* Joe Scarborough, television personality and former Republican U.S. representative from Florida

Withdrew

* Micah Welintukonis, former

Coventry Coventry ( or rarely ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands (county), West Midlands county, in England, on the River Sherbourne. Coventry had been a large settlement for centurie ...

town councilman and Army veteran

Endorsements

General election

Endorsements

Fundraising

Debates

Predictions

Polling

with Ned Lamont and Mark Boughton
with Ned Lamont and Erin Stewart
with Susan Bysiewicz and Erin Stewart
with Susan Bysiewicz and Mark Boughton
with generic Democrat and Republican

Results

By county

Lamont won four of eight counties, while Stefenowski won the other four. Counties that flipped from Democratic to Republican *

Middlesex Middlesex (; abbreviation: Middx) is a Historic counties of England, former county in South East England, now mainly within Greater London. Its boundaries largely followed three rivers: the River Thames, Thames in the south, the River Lea, Le ...

(largest town: Middletown)

By congressional district

Lamont won three of five congressional districts, while Stefenowski won two, both of which were held by Democrats.

Notes

References

External links

Candidates
at

Vote Smart Vote Smart, formerly called Project Vote Smart, is an American non-profit, non-partisan research organization that collects and distributes information on candidates for public office in the United States. It covers candidates and elected offic ...

Candidates
at

Ballotpedia Ballotpedia is a nonprofit and nonpartisan online political encyclopedia that covers federal, state, and local politics, elections, and public policy in the United States. The website was founded in 2007. Ballotpedia is sponsored by the Lucy Bur ...

Debates
GOP Primary Debate, December 6, 2017GOP Primary Debate, January 10, 2018GOP Primary Debate, February 21, 2018
Official gubernatorial campaign websites
Oz Griebel (I) for GovernorRod Hanscomb (L) for GovernorNed Lamont (D) for GovernorBob Stefanowski (R) for Governor
Official lieutenant gubernatorial campaign websites
Susan Bysiewicz (D) for Lieutenant GovernorJoe Markley (R) for Lieutenant Governor
{{2018 United States elections

Gubernatorial A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the type of political region or polity, a ''governor'' ma ...

2018 Events January * January 1 – Bulgaria takes over the Presidency of the Council of the European Union, after the Estonian presidency. * January 4 – SPLM-IO rebels loyal to Chan Garang Lual start a raid against Juba, capital of ...

Connecticut Connecticut ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York (state), New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. ...

November 2018 in the United States 2018 in Connecticut

Democratic primary

Governor

Democratic nominee

Lost the Democratic primary

Withdrew prior to the Democratic primary

Declined

Primary endorsements

Results

Lieutenant governor

Democratic nominee

Lost the Democratic primary

Withdrew

Results

Republican primary

Governor

Republican nominee

Endorsed by the state party; lost the Republican primary

Lost the Republican primary

Eliminated at convention

Withdrew prior to convention

Declined

Convention

Results at the convention

Primary endorsements

Polling

Results

Lieutenant governor

Republican nominee

Lost the Republican primary

Withdrew

Endorsements

Results

Independent

Candidates

Declared

Declined

Withdrew

Endorsements

General election

Endorsements

Fundraising

Debates

Predictions

Polling

Results

By county

By congressional district

See also

Notes

References

External links