2015 Connecticut Senate 23rd district special election
The 2015 Connecticut State Senate 23rd district special election was held on February 24, 2015, in order to fill Andres Ayala Jr.'s seat after he was appointed to be the director of the Connecticut Department of Motor Vehicles. Former Senator Ed Gomes, the nominee of the Connecticut Working Families Party, won the special election and regained the seat that he had held before Ayala Jr. had defeated him in the 2012 primary.
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Gomes was the first person elected to a state legislature with only the nomination of the Working Families Party. He was also the first third-party candidate elected to the Connecticut state legislature since the Socialist Party of America elected four of its members to the state legislature in 1938.
Background
editEd Gomes was elected to the Connecticut State Senate in a 2005 special election. Gomes served in the senate until he was defeated in the Democratic primary by Andres Ayala Jr., who went on to win in the 2012 and 2014 elections. However, Ayala Jr. resigned to become the director of the Connecticut Department of Motor Vehicles in 2015.[1][2]
Campaign
editRichard DeJesus won the Democratic nomination on January 23, 2015, against Gomes after Edwin Farrow, who chaired the convention, broke a twenty-six to twenty-six tie between the two candidates. Gomes' campaign stated that Farrow should have recused himself from breaking the tie and accused the convention of having conflicts of interest, but a panel of the Democratic Party of Connecticut found nothing in their report.[3]
Quentin Dreher won the Republican nomination at the nomination convention on January 12, but chair John Slater filed the certificate of endorsement too late for Dreher to appear on the ballot. Dreher filed a lawsuit to appear on the ballot and won.[4] Gomes won the nomination of the Working Families Party and Kennard Ray served as his campaign manager.[5][6] Kenneth Moales and Charles hare ran as independents.[6]
During the campaign it was revealed that DeJesus owed $139,433 in back taxes and $35,700 in child support.[7][8] Al Sharpton was supposed to appear at a voter registration event for Moales, but cancelled the event after Gomes' supporters reached out to Sharpton as they saw it as an endorsement of Moales.[6]
Gomes' victory made him the first person elected to a state legislature with only the nomination of the Working Families Party; Lindsay Farrell, executive director of the Connecticut Working Families Party, stated that Gomes' victory was "a very big deal for us".[9] Gomes was the first third-party candidate elected to the state legislature in Connecticut since the Socialist Party of America elected four members to the state legislature in 1938.[10] Gomes later became a registered member of the Democratic Party and sought the Democratic nomination in the 2016 election.[11]
Results
edit| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Working Families | Ed Gomes | 1,485 | 48.82% | ||
| Democratic | Richard DeJesus | 791 | 26.00% | ||
| Independent | Kenneth H. Moales Jr. | 509 | 16.73% | ||
| Republican | Quentin Dreher | 152 | 5.00% | ||
| Independent | Charles E. Hare | 105 | 3.45% | ||
| Total votes | 3,042 | 100.00% | |||
Endorsements
edit- Organizations
- Mary McBride-Lee, member of the Bridgeport, Connecticut city council[6]
References
edit- ^ "Ed Gomes wins big, will resume state Senate career at 79". The Connecticut Mirror. February 24, 2015. Archived from the original on May 26, 2021. Retrieved May 26, 2021.
- ^ "State Senator Andres Ayala Jr. To Be Named DMV Commissioner". Capital Gazette. December 22, 2014. Archived from the original on May 26, 2021. Retrieved May 26, 2021.
- ^ "DeJesus officially endorsed for 23rd Senate District". Connecticut Post. January 23, 2015. Archived from the original on May 26, 2021. Retrieved May 26, 2021.
- ^ "Candidate sues to get on state Senate ballot". Connecticut Post. January 23, 2015. Archived from the original on May 26, 2021. Retrieved May 26, 2021.
- ^ "Democratic panel weighs Bridgeport dispute". Connecticut Post. January 21, 2015. Archived from the original on May 26, 2021. Retrieved May 26, 2021.
- ^ a b c d "Sharpton calls off Bridgeport visit". Connecticut Post. February 12, 2015. Archived from the original on May 26, 2021. Retrieved May 26, 2021.
- ^ "Bridgeport Deserves Better Than Compromised Candidates". Hartford Courant. February 5, 2015. Archived from the original on May 26, 2021. Retrieved May 26, 2021.
- ^ "Working Families Party Elects First State Legislator On Own Party Line". HuffPost. February 25, 2015. Archived from the original on May 26, 2021. Retrieved May 26, 2021.
- ^ "Working Families Party claims big victory". Connecticut Post. February 28, 2015. Archived from the original on May 26, 2021. Retrieved May 26, 2021.
- ^ "Working Families Party Elects a State Senator in Connecticut". Ballot Access News. February 24, 2015. Archived from the original on May 26, 2021. Retrieved May 26, 2021.
- ^ "Connecticut State Senator Wins Ballot Access Lawsuit Involving Democratic Primary". Ballot Access News. July 11, 2016. Archived from the original on May 26, 2021. Retrieved May 26, 2021.
- ^ "Vote Totals for Connecticut February 24 Special State Senate Election". Ballot Access News. February 25, 2015. Archived from the original on May 26, 2021. Retrieved May 26, 2021.