Chaplin voters back Gordon in state senate victory
CHAPLIN — Chaplin voters mostly leaned toward incumbents when voting this year.
One exception was Democratic incumbent Christopher Murphy, who is Chaplin's US Senator. Chaplin voters gave him 531 votes, with another votes for him from his cross-endorsement with the Working Families party, but selected Republican challenger Matthew Corey as their choice with 628 votes. Murphy was declared the winner soon after the polls closed on Tuesday.
Chaplin voters backed Democratic incumbent Joe Courtney for US Representative with 619 votes, although his Republican opponent Mike France came close in Chaplin with 597 votes. Neither of the write-in candidates, Kenneth Kusmierski Jr. or Jeffrey Russell, earned Chaplin votes. Courtney was re-elected to represent the 2nd Congressional district.
Chaplin selected Republican Donald Trump for president with 695 votes, while Democrat Kamala Harris earned 535 votes. Green Party candidate Jill Stein took 13 votes, and Libertarian Chase Oliver received 3 votes, while petitioner Robert Kennedy Jr. received 5 votes despite having withdrawn from the race. Trump was announced the winner Wednesday morning.
Republican incumbent State Senator Jeff Gordon, from the 35th district, earned 678 votes, while Democratic challenger Merry Garrett took 486 votes, with another 22 from the Working Families endorsement and 15 from her Independent candidacy. Other towns in the senatorial district include Ashford, Coventry, Eastford, Ellington, Hampton, Stafford, Thompson, Tolland, Union, Vernon, Willington and Woodstock.
Gordon, a doctor from Woodstock, has served one term and is a ranking member of the Veterans and Military Affairs Committee. He also serves on the Appropriations Committee, the Public Health Committee, and the Public Safety and Security Committee.
Garrett is a small businss owner and lives in Tolland.
Gordon was re-elected.
"I have a renewed sense of energy," Gordon said about his win over Garrett, even though by Wednesday morning Garrett had still not conceded the race. "It was a very difficult campaign, but it is official, and a huge thank you to the people of the 13 towns that voted for me."
Incumbent Republican State Representative Doug Dubitsky, who hails from Chaplin, received 725 votes from neighbors, while Democratic challenger Aaron Spruance took 477 votes. Chaplin belongs to the 47th house district, which also includes the towns of Brooklyn, Canterbury, Lisbon, Norwich, Plainfield, Scotland and Sprague.
Dubitsky has served five terms and is a member of the Environmental Committee, the Judiciary Committee, and the Planning and Development Committe. An attorney, Dubitsky is a Chaplin resident who has served on the Board of Finance and on the Planning and Zoning Commission, of which he is currently chair.
Spruance ran on a platform that emphasized a desire to bring honesty, integrity, and responsiveness to the district.
"I have not heard from my opponent, and have not seen the official numbers, but from the unofficial numbers I saw last night, it appears the people of each of my eight amazing towns decided to have me represent them for another term," Dubitsky said.
For Judge of Probate, Chaplin residents selected Republican Douglas Stearns with 697 votes, while Democrat George Baker took 481 votes. The seat became open this year.
For Registrar of Voters, Chaplin residents re-elected Eugene Boomer Jr. with 721 votes as the Republican registrar, and re elected Christopher Komuves as the Democratic registrar with 469 votes.
