“All this we must do, I will argue, to live up to the best within ourselves and our history, to take our place beside those who have gone before in keeping this Republic 'the last, best hope of Earth’.” January 24, 1987. President Ronald Reagan Radio Address to the Nation on the State of the Union
Every two years, I traditionally write about the Connecticut state election after it has been completed. Every cycle I write about the same losses, the same issues with candidates, the same lack of support by the Connecticut Republican leadership, on and on, ad-infinitum. Sadly, 2026 is in fact different, with the difference being the massive and humiliating losses that the Republican Party experienced. This particular election debacle is global, as the party lost the Governor’s race, with the spectacle of the early anointed and front running candidate Mayor Erin Stewart of New Britain being caught up in a financial scandal that somehow was missed by the city’s auditors and curiously omitted or undisclosed by the Republican hierarchy. After very questionable proceedings at the State Republican Convention with respect to the fine candidacy of Betsy McCaughey https://x.com/TonyDeAngelo7/status/2059317195482513551?a=RWKM6s6_yaqSPpswnHU&s=20 in came the now designated candidate, Ryan Fazio, who in the opinion of many, ran a decent campaign given the usual poor support by useless and overpaid out of state consultants, the party itself and lack of money raised even with state matching funds. Moreover, hard, and critical issues were oftentimes omitted and glossed over by the Fazio campaign in the spirit of “bipartisanship.” In any event, the net result is now a State Senate controlled by the Democrats 33-3 and the State House controlled by the Democrats 116-35.
Thus the Connecticut State Democrats have super majorities. No questions shall be asked nor will anything the Republicans say in the House and Senate will ever be heard or acted upon. It is two more years of Omnipotent One-Party rule and a further embarrassment and debacle during a time when one could not believe things could get any worse.
The post-mortems of this disaster are the usual comments and subjects. Many believed by voting Democrat they were rejecting all things President Trump and blamed him for numerous areas including (but not limited to) the Iran war, inflation, ICE enforcement, and high gas and diesel prices. A large part of this failing is the overall failure of Republicans to establish an identity and to communicate all the successes that have taken place in the Trump Administration and in other places. Thus voters in Connecticut came out in force to teach President Trump a lesson and punish him and many other competent or incompetent Republican elected officials and candidates, believing they were doing God's work.
The post-mortems of this disaster are the usual comments and subjects. Many believed by voting Democrat they were rejecting all things President Trump and blamed him for numerous areas including (but not limited to) the Iran war, inflation, ICE enforcement, and high gas and diesel prices. A large part of this failing is the overall failure of Republicans to establish an identity and to communicate all the successes that have taken place in the Trump Administration and in other places. Thus voters in Connecticut came out in force to teach President Trump a lesson and punish him and many other competent or incompetent Republican elected officials and candidates, believing they were doing God's work.
Moreover in the campaign, most Republicans immediately went on defense and denial whenever the President was mentioned, rather than aggressively confronting, (if not humiliating), Democrats and Socialists over their lack of acumen, dastardly and economically unsustainable proposals, and record of failure. Candidates also failed to highlight the Republican policies-driven economic victories unfolding in other states while pointing out that Connecticut’s economic and social disaster is far worse than anything associated with the name TRUMP. In the end game, Democrats did a great job as evidence in the elimination of opposing views for the next two years in Connecticut.
Its the same as always. It is the same devil and the same story in Connecticut, only the year is different.
Tragically, Connecticut had several excellent choices to vote for this past election. Candidates like Lee Elci, Tom Laffin, Chris Lancia, John Bolton, and Dr. John Foley as just a few. As just one example, Dr. Foley knocked on 5,000 doors and talked to thousands of people about his horror of Socialism and Marxism in the Legislature, amongst other grave concerns. But all lost by wide margins. In result, I have heard references to the new Connecticut State Legislature and hierarchy as “garbage” and other assorted terms unfit for print. I say “garbage” is a kind term for what promises to be the most costly, nonsensical and schizophrenic legislative session in the history of the state.
Facebook had numerous memes Wednesday calling for GOP State Chairman Ben Proto to step down, but he had promised Tuesday morning that he’ll stay through the middle of next year.
“My term is up in June, I don’t quit. I’m not leaving the party, I’m not leaving the office. We’ve accomplished a lot, we have a lot more to accomplish,” Proto told interviewer Gary Byron on WDRC’s The Talk of Connecticut. https://www.courant.com/2026/11/05/ct-gop-dispirited-and-discouraged-but-also-eying-28-and-30-races/
Once again, hopeful, and decent Connecticut citizens pray for a change in this continuing saga, only to be continually rebuked. In any disaster, the elevator speeds to the top. And the mismanagement under Ben Proto’s term of service is staggering. Tens of candidate seats are left vacant so that cash can flow back to the inept GOP State Central organization to pay itself, and its ineffective and borderline useless operatives and consultants. Two debates were arranged for Ryan Fazio with both debates being held under the auspices of state-run media and well after the debacle of early voting had started. A Chair that was responsive to the public and in enhancing his candidate would have declined both debates given their timing, or insisted that at least one debate be held in a non-traditional location with Conservative independent moderators. A Chair with his heart truly in the heart of the citizens would make independent media his first stop for deployment of campaign dollars for reasons of a truer message and as an assist to help starve out state run media, which has never helped Republicans anyway. If you consider this to be extreme, I respectfully ask you to review the standing Balance of Power in the Legislature and explain how that result is anything but extreme.
However, the extant problems are even far greater than that the voter is tired of seeing constant Republican failures continually attempted to be explained and poor-excused away. There is no plan or vision other than the same costly nonsense that has made third parties and operatives rich while producing negative results. Thoughtful and heartfelt suggestions and plans from intelligent contributors are summarily ignored since it is obvious the Connecticut Republican Party still has no coherent message that some Connecticut voters want to hear and wishes for you to believe otherwise. Most critically, Republicans in Connecticut have no tangible “brand,” whatsoever making it impossible for a voter to identify with even any good intentions. My friend and colleague Tony De Angelo covered this subject brilliantly on the November 5, 2026 THIRTY WITH TONY
Since the CTGOP has been nothing but a disaster over the past eight years or so, maybe, just maybe, it is time to look at a new political party in Connecticut. A party apart that is free of egos, closet Democrats, uniparty members, bottom-feeders, pseudo-intellectuals, pompous asses, profiteers, cronies, inactive participants, and failed consultants. A party that can communicate to all legal voters a clear-cut message of freedom, prosperity, self-sufficiency, and hope. This task will not be easy as we see these concepts of freedom, prosperity, self-sufficiency, and hope being condemned daily by a self-serving Lamont run media and his profitable hedge fund. To many there were no positives to this election other than the hope that maybe someone can actually lead the Republicans out of this twilight zone nightmare of ineptness, mismanagement and the accepting of defeat as a lifestyle.
Believe it or not Connecticut was an original colony. After this election debacle, maybe it should have stayed a colony of England, since it desires taxation without representation, citizen servitude, and rule under a supreme monarchy.
Believe it or not Connecticut was an original colony. After this election debacle, maybe it should have stayed a colony of England, since it desires taxation without representation, citizen servitude, and rule under a supreme monarchy.
May Connecticut rest in peace. It used to be a great state.
