Political Erosion in "The Land of Steady Habits": Party Politics and Connecticut's 2018 Gubernatorial Election

As a follow up to my presentation at the 2018 and 2019 New England Political Science Association's Clyde McKee Memorial New England Politics Roundtable, this analysis offers an overview of Connecticut's 2018 gubernatorial election. Governor Ned Lamont spent over $16 million and won some 687,000 votes while over 710,000 voted for other candidates. Because of a shrinking and divided state Republican Party, GOP candidates were plentiful but combative against one another. At the same time, the weakened state party bosses sought for pathways to bring factions of their respective parties together. This piece highlights these dynamics, but it also suggests that a longstanding divided Connecticut GOP has allowed for statewide offices to remain in arguably united Democratic hands while an increasing number of voters are not affiliated with any political party. While the Constitution State is known as the "land of steady habits," its voters faced tumultuous political and economic challenges as state civic pride has lessened.