Ryan holds onto his 139th District seat
Democrat Kevin Ryan was elected for a 14th term Tuesday as the 139th District's state representative, keeping his long-held seat against Republican challenger Nick DeLucia.
Ryan swept the districts in Norwich putting him 426 votes ahead of his challenger, even after DeLucia secured the majority votes out of Bozrah and two precincts in Montville.
Unofficially, Ryan had 3,993 votes, while DeLucia received 3,567. Totals do not include absentee counts and same-day registration ballots.
Tuesday night represented another opportunity for Ryan to “keep working hard at the capitol,” he said. “We will continue to do what we are doing. We are still going to look at issues of the economy, jobs and health care in the area, and see how we can improve that efficiently in this area.
“I’m glad to still have the confidence of my constituents, and I look forward to serving another term, doing what I can for the people of Norwich, Bozrah and Montville,” Ryan said.
Ryan, 66, of Montville, relied on voter recognition to secure his seat at the Capitol. He is known for his work serving families and advocating for upholding statewide health services, as well as working to combat the opioid crisis, among other accomplishments.
Besides being a member of the Public Health, Environment and Appropriations committees, as well as touting a long list of committees he has either chaired or served on over his tenure, Ryan also has served as a deputy House speaker since 2011.
DeLucia, 34, a 2003 Norwich Free Academy graduate and a Marine Corps veteran, returned in 2016 to live in his hometown of Norwich. He works as a sales manager for AT&T and serves as vice president of AT&T's veterans employee resource group for Connecticut and New England.
“It goes to show that the district is not happy with how things are going on in the state. We took two of the towns out of the three. We worked hard, hit a lot of doors, talked to a lot of voters, there’s a lot of discontent out there,” DeLucia said. “I congratulate Mr. Ryan. He’s a very likable guy, he’s a very nice guy.”
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