Republican state Rep. Greg Howard of Stonington was endorsed by his party Tuesday night to seek his second term in the 43rd District seat.

The newly redrawn district includes the eastern and northern portions of Stonington, North Stonington and the eastern section of Ledyard.

Howard will face Democrat Ashley Gillece of Pawcatuck, who was endorsed by her party last week.

Howard, a veteran Stonington police detective, is serving his first term in Hartford and is a member of the Appropriations, Judiciary and Public Safety committees.

He said that, while the job is very time-consuming, he had a great time meeting with fellow committee members to craft legislation and making friends in both parties.

"I got a lot of stuff done and got some bad stuff fixed or stopped. As a police officer, I used to say, 'the law is the law. I can't change it.' But now I can help fix it," he said.

Among his accomplishments in the General Assembly, Howard said he was able get $250,000 included in the state budget to establish a child guidance center in Stonington, implemented a $500-a-call payment to volunteer fire departments that respond to calls on Interstate 95, mandated background checks for adults involved in youth sports and camps and gave parental rights to lesbian couples in which one spouse gave birth to a child. He also helped make changes to the police accountability law and prevented police officers who seeks mental health assistance from being disciplined, demoted or fired.