Groton ― Groton Town Councilor Aundré Bumgardner, a Democrat, was elected Tuesday to serve the 41st House District, in a race in which Republican Robert Boris and unaffiliated candidate James “Jake” Francis Dunigan IV also were vying for.

The vote was 3,237 for Bumgardner, 2,204 for Boris, who also was endorsed by the Independent Party, and 117 for Dunigan.

Bumgardner, 28, will again represent the 41st House District, a seat he held from 2015 to 2017, but this time as a Democrat and in a re-aligned district that covers parts of Groton and Stonington. Bumgardner won the seat in 2015 as a Republican and became the youngest state representative in state history.

The election will bring a change to the district’s leadership as State Rep. Joe de la Cruz, D-Groton, has held the seat since 2016, but decided not to run for reelection.

“I want to thank my family, my friends, and every single person who showed up this election cycle, no matter who they voted for... I’m so excited to roll up my sleeves and get to work on behalf of the 41st District,” Bumgardner said Tuesday evening.

Bumgardner, a City of Groton resident, works as a customer experience specialist for Balfour Beatty Communities, a real estate management company that manages Navy housing in Groton.

Boris, 52, a City of Groton resident and the president of Groton-based Command Technology Inc., said he was proud of the way he ran his campaign.

“The numbers coming in seem to be along party lines and obviously that’s a little disappointing but I’m very grateful that our democratic process works and congratulations to Aundre,” said Boris. “I’m really grateful to the community and the supporters on both parties that came together behind me. I think that’s important that our community focuses on things we can do together to build on the assets we have in the 41st. And yeah, I’m very optimistic and grateful and proud of our system of government.”

Boris is the vice chairman of the Town of Groton Economic Development Commission and an alternate member of the City of Groton Planning and Zoning Commission.

Dunigan, 37, said he learned a lot in his first bid for public office.

“The thing I set out to do was to get people to critically think about their vote, and I think I did that for a lot of people,” said Dunigan, who lives on the Groton-side of Mystic. “I got to put some ideas out there, particularly in the debates, and even if I didn’t influence the voters that much, I certainly influenced the candidates so I’m happy about that.”