The 2018 midterm election was a landmark election, with voter turnout being the highest it has ever been for a midterm election. It was a major political moment, as the Democrats were able to regain control of the House of Representatives.
In Connecticut, there were 5 candidates up for the U.S House of Representatives. It was a full sweep for the Democratic Party, with four out of five incumbents, John Larson, Joe Courtney, Rosa DeLauro and Jim Himes keeping their seats.
Elizabeth Esty, the fifth incumbent, did not seek reelection. Jahana Hayes, a Democrat and former teacher, won the fifth seat. Hayes is the first black female to be elected to the House of Representatives in Connecticut.
Hayes’s win, as well as other landmark wins this election, rejuvenated the spirit of young people in the United States. “[I found this election to be] empowering because the amount of women who ran and actually won was exciting,” Rehana Konate (’19) said.
The new representatives, who are joining a Democrat majority House of Representatives, share similar viewpoints, from gun violence prevention and stricter gun control laws (Larson, DeLauro, Hayes) to maintaining pro-choice decisions (Courtney, DeLauro, Himes).
“It [is] good that the Democrats won back to the House of Reps because Donald Trump had too much power with controlling both,” said Leslie Perez (’19).
Only one U.S Senate seat was up for grabs in this election, and it was kept by Chris Murphy. He will be able to continue his fight to allow every child in America to have an early childhood to a college education regardless of any differences, gun-control laws, and policies that want to raise Connecticut’s minimum wage to $15. Murphy also wants to launch a New-Haven-Hartford-Springfield high-speed rail.
“Donald Trump still has so much power even though the Democrats won the House of Reps. He has control over the Senate which makes it still hard for Democrats to get anything done,” said Reynold Rene (’20).
The gubernatorial race was close, but Democrat Ned Lamont managed to get enough votes to secure Governor against Bob Stefanowski. Lamont plans to revitalize Connecticut’s economy and provide more jobs to residents. He wants to invest in education, provide property tax relief for the middle class, solve the housing crisis, address climate change, and fight for the LGBTQ Community, amongst many other topics.
Democrat William Tong defeated Republican Sue Hatfield for the position of Attorney General. Incumbent Denise W. Merrill retained his status as the Secretary of State, and is focusing on civic engagements and promoting business enterprise. Shawn Wooden, a Democrat, defeated Republican Thad Gray for Treasurer. Incumbent Kevin Lembo won his reelection for Comptroller and will continue to lead to expanding public access to information about the state’s spending and its revenue.
On the local level, Jackie Pioli, Mike Altamura, and Frank Cerasoli, Democrats, won seats on the Board of Education. They will do their duty to oversee issues that are arising within Stamford’s schools, developing curriculum and the budget and so much more.
