In the thick of the state budget battle last winter, just 15 of the 138 Democratic lawmakers signed a letter imploring their leadership not to borrow, but to cut spending to close the burgeoning deficit. Rep. Steven Mikutel was one of them.

"The only way we can responsibly address the current deficit is to immediately reduce spending," the letter read.

Rep. Mikutel gets it. The nine-term incumbent represents the 45th District, which comprises Griswold, Voluntown, Lisbon and the southern end of Plainfield.

The 60-year-old is one of the handful of Democrats who opposed the General Assembly's deficit mitigation package because it failed to make the substantive cuts necessary to make Connecticut affordable.

In his bid to return to Hartford for a 10th term he is being challenged by Republican Michael Zelasky, who failed in 2002 to unseat Rep. Mikutel. Mr. Zelasky, 47, said he will not support any tax increases and favors across-the-board cuts in spending. But he is short on specifics, which suggest he hasn't got a grasp on the breadth and depth of the state's financial quandary.

Rep. Mikutel understands the severity of the problem and knows what is required to make Connecticut financially whole again. A conservative Democrat on both fiscal and social issues, he is willing to stand up to leadership and to his colleagues, even when he is on the unpopular end of a legislative issue.

Rep. Mikutel wants to see government partner with the private sector to restore some of the 100,000 jobs lost in the state during the recession. He's a proponent of mass transit, particularly commuter rail, and understands the necessity of improving the state's highways. But most of all, he gets the budget problem and is ready to make tough choices to fix it.

The Day endorses Rep. Steven Mikutel for re-election.