Gov. Ned Lamont is filing papers Friday that will make him an official, if still unannounced, candidate for governor, an anticlimactic start to a campaign for a third term as Connecticut’s 89th governor in 2026.
Lamont, 71, a Democrat who had left no question in recent months of his intention to run while lining up a manager and a campaign consultant, still plans a formal public kickoff, a spokesman said.
The creation of a campaign committee is a step allowing Lamont to begin making expenditures and accepting contributions, though the independently wealthy governor has largely self-funded his previous campaigns.
By state law, he will be a candidate the moment his papers are filed with the State Elections Enforcement Commission.
Lamont said at a press conference Friday that there would be more details about the plans for the campaign next week.
“[Lt. Gov.] Susan [Bysiewicz] and I are ready to go,” he said.
Asked why they waited so long to file, Bysiewicz said they were waiting for municipal elections to end.
“We had some really impactful municipal elections, and we’re glad they’re over with,” Bysiewicz said. “The people of Connecticut have spoken very loudly, and now we can think about what’s next.”
Lamont backed into his campaign for a second term with a similar filing Nov. 8, 2021, though he initially confused reporters then by saying the filing “facilitates” his getting into a campaign, but he’s got to “make up my mind formally in the months to come.”
Bysiewicz quickly clarified they were running at the time.
On the form he is filing Friday, Lamont must choose if he once again will opt out of the state’s voluntary system of publicly financing campaigns.
The public grants for a gubernatorial race are $3.2 million for a primary and $15 million for the general election. Lamont spent $15.1 million on his 2018 campaign and $25.7 million on his 2022 reelection.
Lamont could face a primary. Rep. Josh Elliott, D-Hamden, opened a gubernatorial campaign over the summer, saying the governor is too conservative on taxes and spending.
The contenders for the Republican gubernatorial nomination are Sen. Ryan Fazio, 35, of Greenwich and Mayor Erin Stewart, 38, of New Britain. Fazio opened his campaign in August, and Stewart has been raising money through an exploratory campaign committee since January.
“Gov. Lamont’s first eight years in office have seen Connecticut’s electricity rates rise to the third highest in the nation and our economic growth plummet to fourth worst in the country,” Fazio said in a Friday press release. “Two terms are more than enough.”
Connecticut, which has no term limits, is one of only 13 states that allow a governor to seek three consecutive terms. Over the summer and into the fall, Lamont had been a running a soft campaign, holding events publicizing the state’s fiscal stability and economic growth.
A month ago, he acknowledged in an interview he soon would have to have to shift to outlining a third-term agenda.
“You can’t sit around and talk about the past,” he said. “That’s for damn sure.”
CT Mirror reporter Ginny Monk contributed to this story.
