Governor Ned Lamont celebrated his re-election with other Connecticut democrats Wednesday. The democratic incumbent said that he is focused on "growth" and "opportunity" as he prepares for his second term.
“I am going to do everything I can to get people back to work. It’s an incredibly unique time when we have 100,000 jobs to fill and I will do everything I can to make it easier for you to be able to step up and take one of those jobs," Lamont said. "I said, probably 200 times, I don’t want more taxes, but I don’t mind more taxpayers.”
Lamont is the projected winner with about 56% of the votes. He said that he has heard from both of his opponents, Bob Stefanowski (R) and Rob Hotaling (I).
“I see a lot of friction, a lot of edginess across the country when it comes to elections. Not in Connecticut," Lamont said. "When the election is over, we come back together, we come as one, and we work together."
Republican candidate Bob Stefanowski released a statement Wednesday morning calling his campaign a step in the right direction.
"This campaign was an example of what can be done when you stand up for what you believe in," Stefanowski wrote. "We may not have won, but we changed the course of Connecticut by advocating for the people."
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Stefanowski ran against Lamont in 2018 and lost by a small margin. This election, NBC News is reporting a larger margin of victory for Lamont.
In his statement, Stefanowski implored the governor to support the people who voted from him as much as the ones who did not. He said that politics has become too divisive.
"We are going to continue to lead, to find common ground, and to keep doing what the governor has pushed us to do in terms of finding middle ground. We have done that on budgets, legislation, and we are going to continue," Lt. Governor Susan Bysiewicz said during a press conference Wednesday morning.
Bysiewicz said that the administration has been listening to voters.
"They want us to keep passing balanced budgets with out raising taxes and paying down our debt obligations," Bysiewicz said. “They also told us they want us to continue a bipartisan approach."
On helping Connecticut residents impacted by inflation, Lamont said that he will be working closely with the legislature.
“I’m going to make sure that I do everything I can to help the middle class during this incredibly tough time," Lamont said.
The governor also said that his team is looking at gas tax revenues, the reserves and things the state can do to make it more affordable.
"Right now I think we are in decent shape and I’d like to sit down and talk with the legislature on how we can continue a gas tax cut beyond Dec. 1," Lamont told reporters.
