HARTFORD, CT — Fresh off a 63-vote victory in a special election in Stratford, the Democratic National Committee announced it was giving the Connecticut Democratic Party $50,000 to modernize its training and support.
“What we learned in 2017 is that when Democrats recruit great candidates, and make meaningful, early investments in organizing and community engagement, we can win anywhere,” DNC Chair Tom Perez said in a press release. “The DNC is proud to partner with the Connecticut Democratic Party through this grant, which will amplify training and organizing programs across the state.”
Democrats have held a majority in the General Assembly for more than 40 years, but Republicans began to slowly chip away at that majority, drawing even in the state Senate in 2016 and coming within a handful of seats in the House.
Connecticut is one of 10 states in 2018 that are being considered a “battleground” when it comes to which party may control the state House and Senate.
Ballotpedia, an online encyclopedia of elections, is tracking the races and found Connecticut’s House and Senate races have the potential to result in a shift in power from Democratic to Republican control.
But Democrats believe they have momentum on their side.
“Last week, Connecticut Democrats flipped the 120th House district from red to blue after 44 years of Republican control, on top of the 22 municipalities we flipped in 2017. Momentum is on our side, and we must continue to energize our grassroots base,” Connecticut Democratic Party Chair Nick Balletto, said. “Thanks to Tom Perez’s leadership, these grants will play a key role in supporting state parties as they work to elect Democratic candidates in every ZIP code.”
The Democratic National Committee says it’s recently increased its contributions to state parties. State parties have consistently been receiving $10,000 a month since October 2017, which is a 33-percent increase over the base funding levels from 2016 and a 100 percent increase over 2015, and is based on state-specific strategic plans.
