Ned Lamont won Connecticut’s Democratic primary for governor on August 11, securing his party’s nomination for a third term with roughly 68% of the vote against progressive challenger Josh Elliott, according to the Associated Press.
The incumbent governor defeated Elliott, a 41-year-old state representative from Hamden, with nearly 126,000 votes to Elliott’s 59,000, according to NBC News. Elliott conceded around 8:50 p.m. and called for Democratic unity in the general election.
The primary marked a historic moment for Connecticut politics. It was the first time in 48 years that a sitting governor of either party had faced a primary challenge from within his own party, according to the New York Times. The last such challenge came in 1978 when Democrat Ella Grasso faced opposition. Throughout the campaign, the race pitted Lamont’s moderate approach to governance against Elliott’s progressive platform, which included a proposed 4% surtax on incomes exceeding $1 million and a state public option for health care.
Lamont, 72, emphasized his record managing the state through the pandemic and overseeing budget surpluses, according to CT Mirror. “We’re fighting Trump where we’ve got to fight him,” Lamont said before the polls closed. “But more importantly, or just as importantly, we got to manage the state every day and make sure it’s a place affordable for people, so they can get by. That takes a certain pragmatism.”
Elliott’s campaign was aggressive, airing caustic ads criticizing Lamont as out of touch due to his independent wealth. One commercial compared the governor to a soiled diaper, saying politicians should be changed often. The ad drew criticism from some voters, including one woman who told Elliott it cost him her vote. Lamont did not respond heavily to the attacks until a week before the primary, airing an ad questioning Elliott’s legislative attendance.
Lamont had substantial backing from organized labor, a traditional Democratic constituency. The Connecticut AFL-CIO and nearly every major labor group supported him, according to CT Mirror. This support reflected gains the labor movement achieved under Lamont, including a 2019 law ensuring Connecticut’s minimum wage would rank among the nation’s highest.
Elliott received 25% of delegates at the Democratic convention in May, enough to force a primary despite Lamont’s endorsement. Though Elliott lost the primary, he remains on the November ballot as a candidate for re-election to the state House. He said he may run for governor again in 2030, telling supporters that the race proved “we were able to sort of prove everybody wrong every step of the way here,” according to CT Mirror.
Lamont now faces Republican Ryan Fazio, a 36-year-old state senator from Greenwich, in the general election. Connecticut has not elected a Republican governor or U.S. representative in 20 years. Fazio’s party has declined significantly since Trump’s first election; Republicans held nearly half the seats in Connecticut’s General Assembly when Trump took office in 2017 but now hold fewer than one-third, according to CT Mirror.
If Lamont wins in November, he could become Connecticut’s longest-serving governor in more than 200 years, according to CT Mirror. Only two governors nationwide are seeking third terms in 2026: Lamont and Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker.
Sources
- CT Mirror — Lamont’s primary victory margin, historical precedent of 48 years without a sitting governor primary challenge, Lamont’s record on budget surpluses and tax cuts, labor union support, Elliott’s delegate count and campaign strategy, Republican party decline in Connecticut, longest-serving governor context
- NBC News — Final vote totals (Lamont 125,577 votes / 67.9%; Elliott 59,447 votes / 32.1%)
- Associated Press — Primary victory projection and call
- New York Times — Historical precedent: Ella Grasso in 1978 as last sitting governor to face primary challenge; two governors seeking third terms in 2026
