Had Attorney General George Jepsen sought Connecticut’s top office he’d likely be the Democratic standard bearer. Eschewing a third term as the state’s top civil attorney, Jepsen on Monday endorsed Ned Lamont for governor declaring “Of all the Democratic candidates, Ned is the only one who can win the November general election.”
In 2006, running largely an anti-war message, Lamont shocked then U.S. Senator Joe Lieberman in a primary. Lieberman prevailed in the general election on an independent line with heavy Republican support. In 2010, the wealthy Greenwich businessman lost a Democratic primary for governor to Dan Malloy. Lamont once again is self-funding his campaign.
Party endorsements for governor will take place in May. Mayor Joe Ganim, Hartford Mayor Luke Bronin, former state commissioner Jonathan Harris and former Connecticut Secretary of the State Susan Bysiewicz are also eyeing the governor’s office in a wide-open field. The Republican side is also wide open.
News release from Lamont campaign:
Attorney General George Jepsen today announced his endorsement of Ned Lamont for Governor of Connecticut. Jepsen says he believes that Connecticut needs a fresh start, and that outsider Ned Lamont is the only candidate for Governor who can win in November and bring real change.
“Today, I am pleased to announce my endorsement of Ned Lamont’s candidacy for Governor,” said Attorney General George Jepsen. “Of all the Democratic candidates, Ned is the only one who can win the November general election. Ned carries a real understanding of the policy issues facing our state; he is thoughtful, practical, and brings a diversity of public and private sector experience to the table. I know him as a man of integrity who will not shy away from standing for what is right. Finally, and most importantly, at this critical juncture for our state, Ned will not hesitate to make the hard but necessary choices for Connecticut. Ned is the right leader for Connecticut for the next four years, and I urge my fellow Democrats to join me in supporting Ned Lamont for Governor,” said Jepsen.
Ned Lamont accepted Jepsen’s endorsement saying, “Attorney General Jepsen has served the people of Connecticut with incredible distinction, and I am humbled and honored to receive his support. I want everyone to see Connecticut as a state of opportunity, where there is a fair and growing economy, a sustainable future for all, and the 21st-century infrastructure necessary to retain and attract jobs to our state. I believe in Connecticut, and as Governor, I will work hard to make you believe too.”
Ned Lamont is a leading member of the business community who has leveraged his experience in the academic and business worlds to attract new business to Connecticut, most notably Infosys, a tech company that will train 1,000 people a year for high paying tech jobs. For the past decade, Ned has been training the next generation of entrepreneurs as a professor at Central Connecticut State University.
Ned Lamont stormed the Connecticut political scene in 2006 when he stood up in opposition to the War in Iraq; challenging, and beating Joe Lieberman–a sitting United States Senator, and former Vice Presidential nominee–in the Democratic Primary. In 2008, Ned acted as Campaign Chair for Barack Obama in Connecticut where he helped deliver President Obama his only primary win in New England. In 2010, Ned challenged Dan Malloy for the Democratic nomination for Governor. At the time Ned said that if real political courage was not shown, Connecticut would find itself still in the same economic crisis ten years down-the-road.
https://youtu.be/K8E_zMLCRNg
Some people talk out of both sides of their mouths. Here’s one of them:
https://tenor.com/view/fake-news-news-fake-political-reporting-reporting-gif-7676579
Jepsen must have been oromised a job.
Jepsen has the best job in the state, attorney general.
If he’s good enough for George, he’s good enough for me.
Go Ned Lamont.
When you were born to legislate, leadership is all about jumping on the bandwagon.
I didn’t have anything negative to say about George Jepson until I read of this endorsement.
How can anybody possibly support a Democrat let alone a very liberal Lamont for Governor after looking how the major urban centers have fared under 1-party Democrat rule…Or the CT Legislature being controlled by Democrats for the past 30 years?
I understand that Jepson would go for a Democrat but Lamont?
This is the self-funding version of Republicans Foley & McMahon.
Denis
Lamont didn’t have anything to do with how the the major urban centers have fared over how many years you want to look at.
Nor did he have anything to do with how the legislature has treated them over the past 30 years.
He is not your typical Democratic candidate. That’s the point.
Sorry Bob. Respect your views but I met and spoke with him the last time he ran. Seems like a typical empty suit down county guy that has his millions and now is going to save us from ourselves.
I hope that he won’t be too much of a Progressive. We need some Agressive to turn our state around. Not another SEIOU sock puppet.
That should go a long way in killing the Lamont Candidacy… Worst AG in modern Connecticut history… Allowed the DEEP and utilities to rape, pillage ,and plunder the Connecticut economy and rate-paying public during the whole of his tenure… Allowed Eversource (Northeast Utilities) to gobble-up Connecticut utilities across all sectors (they now own even Aquarion Water…) And, of course, he’s a Dan Malloy appointee — consistent in every way with the destructive tenure of the Malloy Administration…
And, when it all shakes out, it will turn out to be part of the scheme to put Luke Bronin in Dan Malloy’s seat and position Ned to run for the US Senate down the road with a boost from the Governor’s Office…
Jepsen is jockeying for a cushy appointed position in the propspective Bronin Administration?… Or maybe he’s looking to run for Congress?
*** Jepsen is a bit shady when it comes to politics. He showed his colors, when his buddy Finch was Mayor of Bpt.***