State Rep. Josh Elliott provides a landing spot for Democratic progressives opposed to Governor Ned Lamont’s centrist governing, be it housing, education spending, property taxes and fiscal guardrails, as he explains in the video above.
Elliott has been moving around the state building support to wage an August 2026 primary. The Democratic convention will take place in May.
His background:
Josh grew up in Connecticut and attended high school in Hamden, graduated with a B.A. in Sociology from Ithaca College. He later went on to obtain his J.D. at Quinnipiac School of Law.
In 2016, he won a historic primary for the 88th District House seat, successfully challenging the sitting Speaker of the Connecticut House. Since then, Josh has been re-elected by wide margins each cycle. Over nearly a decade of service, he has established himself as a leading progressive voice, advancing policies that strengthen Connecticut’s economy and keep it competitive with surrounding states.
As the founder and chair of the Tax Equity Caucus, Josh has been a driving force in efforts to reform Connecticut’s regressive tax system, ensuring that the wealthiest residents pay their fair share rather than shifting the burden onto low-income families. His commitment to working families is evident in his support for landmark legislation, including raising the minimum wage, guaranteeing paid sick days for all Connecticut workers, and establishing paid family and medical leave.
He believes so deeply that the right to vote is a fundamental feature of government that he has sponsored several bills aimed at efficiently reforming Connecticut’s electoral system. Among these are a bill that would restore voting privileges of formerly incarcerated individuals on parole, and a bill that would implement a ranked-choice voting system, which would allow a voter to rank candidates by their preference.
Josh is dedicated to improving the treatment of Connecticut’s incarcerated population. He is an active advocate of banning the use of solitary confinement .He pushed for Connecticut to be the first state to remove the cost for incarcerated individuals to make phone calls to loved ones. Prior to this Connecticut had the highest cost in the United States for these calls. Studies show a positive correlation between family communication and lower reincarceration rates.
Josh has been at the forefront of many other important issues. He is working to ensure that Connecticut employs quality public health standards and was a champion for the elimination of the religious exemption for MMR vaccination for K-12 students. He has been a consistent advocate for women and LGBTQ+ communities, and he played a leading role in the successful effort to legalize cannabis in Connecticut—a step forward in ending the war on drugs and advancing social justice. As Chair of the Higher Education Committee, he championed the rights of faculty, staff, and students, passing critical legislation to combat sexual assault on college campuses and securing the right for student athletes to benefit from their Name, Image, and Likeness.
Currently, Representative Josh Elliott serves as Deputy Speaker and Majority Caucus Co-Chair. He is also a member of the Finance, Revenue & Bonding Committee, the Public Health Committee, and the Judiciary Committee. On the national stage, he served as chief whip for Kamala Harris from the Connecticut delegation at the Democratic National Convention and was one of the first elected officials in the state to endorse her presidential campaign.
In addition to his work in the legislature, Josh is co-owner of Thyme and Season, a grocery store in Hamden.
My early education was in two of Hamden’s public elementary schools where my Mother was a teacher. It was a time when challenges to reading a book were not as ready to derail learning, that comes from exposure to, reflection upon, and natural curiosity to facts or narratives in the content.
What does the local Democratic Town Committee have to say, at any time, about anything in terms of following its internal rules about communications with members, or the public in general? Why does it command a SILENCE observance at a time of potential voters stating as one left MMGC yesterday: “I am a child of God and they (referring to those in power) do not care about me. Why bother?”
As a person of faith we continued the conversation to inform her that this year’s ballot will have questions about adopting a Revised Charter with major new elements about CIVIL SERVICE, ETHICS governance, and added opportunity for CITIZENS to participate more fully in Boards and Commissions, when current ‘appointing powers’ fail to complete their assignments. She was open to the message. How many of you will open your mind to information that may be new to you? Commit yourself to be a participant in democracy in action. 2021 final ballots counted 5351 Bridgeport voters exercising their right to voice their opinions on good governance to overcome ‘weak political leadership’. What if you asked a neighbor to vote for Council persons and vote the Charter also? Time will tell.
Finely, someone to shit-can the Income Tax, and replace it with Tolls!
Since its enactment in 1991, Connecticut’s income tax has gone from a flat 4.5% tax to a graduated tax, ranging from 2% to 6.99%.
As in the economy takes its toll; Crime takes its toll; Unemployment takes its toll; Poverty takes its toll; High taxes taxes its toll… I know what you mean Jimfox.
It will be interesting to listen to the debates during the campaign. He will need to address the effects of Trump’s Big Ugly Bill on Connecticut, as it will be throwing tens of thousands of people in Connecticut off of Food Stamps and Husky Health Care — the state will need to find and apportion money to make up for the huge federal cuts to these programs. He will have his hands full finding ways to patch gaping holes in the social safety net even as he finds ways to create 100,000 affordable housing units and get electricity bills and local property taxes down to affordable levels.
And, he will have to find a way to right the political situation of the political cesspool that is Bridgeport…
Tax the rich! OK. But to exactly what ends?…
It’s about Thyme someone stepped up to challenge Lamont as the election Season approaches. Whi will win? Thyme will tell.