2008 United States House of Representatives elections in Connecticut

← 2006 November 4, 2008 (2008-11-04) 2010 →
All 5 Connecticut seats to theUnited States House of Representatives
Majority party Minority party   Party Democratic Republican Last election 4 1 Seats won 5 0 Seat change 1 1 Popular vote 1,006,915 504,785 Percentage 65.29% 32.73% Swing 4.94% 6.34%
District results Municipality results Democratic   40–50%   50–60%   60–70%   70–80%   80–90%   90–100% Republican   40–50%   50–60%   60–70%

The2008 congressional elections in Connecticut were held on November 4, 2008, to determine who would represent thestate ofConnecticut in theUnited States House of Representatives, coinciding with thepresidential election. Representatives are elected for two-year terms; those elected will serve in the111th Congress from January 3, 2009, until January 3, 2011. The Primary election was held on August 12.^[1]

Connecticut has five seats in the House, apportioned according to the2000 United States census. Its 2007-2008 congressional delegation consisted of fourDemocrats and oneRepublican. In the 2008 elections, District 4 changed from Republican to Democratic, so Connecticut's congressional delegation to the 111th Congress consists of five Democrats, giving Connecticut an all-Democratic congressional delegation for the 1st time since 1967. This election also marked the last time any seat in the Connecticut congressional delegation changed partisan control. This marked the first time since the founding of the Republican Party in 1854 that they failed to hold any House seat inNew England.

Prior to the election,CQ Politics forecasted districts 2, 4, and 5 to be at some risk for the incumbent party.

^A The Working Families Party endorsed all the Democratic candidates on afusion ticket. In the previous election, it only endorsed one Democratic candidate.^[4]

This district covers much of central Connecticut and includes municipalities withinHartford,Litchfield, andMiddlesex counties. Five-term incumbentJohn B. Larson faced RepublicanJoe Visconti and Green Party candidateStephen E. D. Fournier.

• Larson's campaign website
• Visconti's campaign website
• Fournier's campaign website
• Race ranking and details fromCQ Politics
• Campaign contributions fromOpenSecrets

Incumbent John B. Larson retained his seat with over 71 percent of the vote.

^A Includes 17,000 votes from theWorking Families Party line, which endorsed Larson on afusion ticket.^[4]

This district covers eastern Connecticut, includingNew London andNorwich. In the closest U.S. House race of 2006, DemocratJoe Courtney unseated three-term incumbent RepublicanRob Simmons by only 82 votes. Courtney's chance at reelection increased when Simmons decided against a rematch. FormerNaval Submarine Base New London base commander Sean Sullivan was the Republican candidate.^[10] Third-party challengers included former State Department Of Environmental Protection scientist G. Scott Deshefy for the Green Party^[11][12] and Todd Vachon for theSocialist Party, running as a write-in candidate.^[13]

• Courtney's campaign website
• Sullivan's campaign website
• Deshefy's campaign website
• Vachon's campaign website
• Race ranking and details fromCQ Politics
• Campaign contributions fromOpenSecrets

Joe Courtney was reelected with a substantially larger margin than in 2006, winning nearly 66 percent of the vote.

^A Includes 13,164 votes from theWorking Families Party line, which endorsed Courtney on afusion ticket.^[4]

This district is centered on the city ofNew Haven and its immediate suburbs. The district has been represented by DemocratRosa DeLauro since 1991. Her challengers in this election included Republican Bo Itshaky and Green Ralph Ferrucci.

• DeLauro's campaign website
• Itshaky's campaign website
• Race ranking and details fromCQ Politics
• Campaign contributions fromOpenSecrets

Rosa DeLauro was easily reelected to a tenth term, receiving over 77 percent of the vote.

^A Includes 25,411 votes from theWorking Families Party line, which endorsed DeLauro on afusion ticket.^[4]

2008 Connecticut's 4th congressional district election

← 2006 2010 →

Nominee Jim Himes Chris Shays Party Democratic Republican Popular vote 158,475 146,854 Percentage 51.3% 47.6%

Municipality results Himes:     50–60%     70–80% Shays:     50–60%     60–70%

U.S. Representative before election Chris Shays Republican Elected U.S. Representative Jim Himes Democratic

This district includes portions ofFairfield andNew Haven counties insouthwestern Connecticut. Democratic nomineeJim Himes, a formerGoldman Sachs executive, won against Republican incumbentChris Shays and third-party candidates Richard Duffee, who withdrew from the 2006 race, and Michael Anthony Carrano.^[14]

Shays won 51% of the vote in 2006 and 52% in 2004 in a district that went to John Kerry with 53% in 2004 (CPVI=D+5). In September, 2007, Shays indicated that if he was not given the top Republican seat on the Governmental Oversight Committee, he would retire. The only Republican House member inNew England, he was expected to be a top target of Democrats.

Democrat Himes announced his candidacy in April 2007. 2006 U.S. Senate candidateNed Lamont was considered a potential candidate, although he lost in this district to incumbent SenatorJoe Lieberman, whom Shays had endorsed. Other possible Democratic candidates included state SenatorsBob Duff and Andrew MacDonald. Former professional hockey playerMike Richter, once considered a possible candidate, announced that he was not interested in running in 2008. It was thoughtLowell P. Weicker Jr. might try to reclaim his old seat.

• Shay's campaign website
• Himes' campaign website
• Duffee's campaign website
• Race ranking and details fromCQ Politics
• Campaign contributions fromOpenSecrets

Jim Himes defeated incumbent Christopher Shays, receiving slightly more than 51 percent of the vote. With Himes' victory, the Democrats now control all five of Connecticut's House seats, as well as all other House seats inNew England.

^A Includes 9,130 votes from theWorking Families Party line, which endorsed Himes on afusion ticket.^[4]

2008 Connecticut's 5th congressional district election

← 2006 2010 →

Nominee Chris Murphy David Cappiello Party Democratic Republican Alliance Working Families Popular vote 179,327 117,914 Percentage 59.9% 39.4%

Municipality results Murphy:     40–50%     50–60%     60–70%     70–80% Cappiello:     40–50%     50–60%

U.S. Representative before election Chris Murphy Democratic Elected U.S. Representative Chris Murphy Democratic

This district includes all of NorthwesternConnecticut, and runs fromMeriden andNew Britain in Central Connecticut, toWaterbury, theLitchfield Hills, and theFarmington RiverValley.

Freshman DemocratChris Murphy unseated 24-year incumbentNancy Johnson with 56% of the vote in 2006. Nonetheless, the district is arguably Connecticut's most conservative (CPVI=D+4), and some considered Murphy vulnerable. State SenatorDavid Cappiello was the Republican candidate.^[15] Tony Nania also considered a run, but withdrew from consideration for the Republican nomination in May.^[16] GOP state chairman Chris Healy dismissed claims that Murphy's large campaign warchest of $420,000 in the first quarter of 2007 may scare off potential challengers, as Cappiello filed as a candidate in April 2007.^[17]

National Republicans ran radio ads in the summer of 2007 claiming Murphy has adopted special interest fundraising politics he had claimed to oppose. In addition, Cappiello accused Murphy of missing important votes.^[18]

Third-party candidates includedCanton attorney Harold Burbank for the Green Party andWatertown resident Tom Winn, running as an independent candidate.^[19][20]

• Murphy's campaign websiteArchived September 17, 2008, at theWayback Machine
• Cappiello's campaign websiteArchived 2008-08-06 at theWayback Machine
• Burbank's campaign website
• Winn's campaign website
• Race ranking and details fromCQ Politics
• Campaign contributions fromOpenSecrets

Chris Murphy retained his seat, receiving just under 60 percent of the vote.

^A Includes 18,149 votes from theWorking Families Party line, which endorsed Murphy on afusion ticket.^[4]

• Elections and Voting from theConnecticut Secretary of State
• U.S. Congress candidates for Connecticut atProject Vote Smart
• Connecticut U.S. House Races from2008 Race Tracker
• Campaign contributions for Connecticut congressional races fromOpenSecrets

• United States House of Representatives elections in Connecticut
• 2008 United States House of Representatives elections
• 2008 Connecticut elections

• Webarchive template wayback links
• All articles with dead external links
• Articles with dead external links from December 2021
• Articles with permanently dead external links
• Articles with short description
• Short description is different from Wikidata
• Use mdy dates from September 2023
• Pages using sidebar with the child parameter