A Connecticut Party was a political party formed by former Republican senator and gubernatorial candidate

Lowell Weicker Lowell Palmer Weicker Jr. (; born May 16, 1931) is an American politician who served as a U.S. Representative, U.S. Senator, and the 85th Governor of Connecticut. He unsuccessfully sought the Republican nomination for president in 1980. He was ...

in 1990."A Connecticut Party Endorses Lieberman". New York Times, July 07, 1994
/ref> Weicker subsequently won the 1990 gubernatorial election and served a single term as

governor of Connecticut The governor of Connecticut is the head of government of Connecticut, and the commander-in-chief of the state's military forces. The governor has a duty to enforce state laws, and the power to either approve or veto bills passed by the Connec ...

. The party was intentionally named to fall alphabetically first on the ballot. In 1992 the party held its first convention with 350 delegates attending. At the convention the party endorsed more than 100 candidates for the

General Assembly A general assembly or general meeting is a meeting of all the members of an organization or shareholders of a company. Specific examples of general assembly include: Churches * General Assembly (presbyterian church), the highest court of presby ...

(about 80 Democrats, 16 A Connecticut Party candidates and a "handful of Republicans"). In 1994, Weicker's lieutenant governor,

Eunice Groark Eunice Groark (February 1, 1938 – May 8, 2018) was an American politician who was the first woman elected lieutenant governor of Connecticut in 1990. Groark ran on the ticket of A Connecticut Party (ACP) with Lowell Weicker, winning the elect ...

, carried the ACP banner into the governor's race, but was defeated, finishing third with 18.9% of the vote. In other races for statewide or federal office, the party mostly endorsed Democrats including incumbents Joe Lieberman for US Senate, Richard Blumenthal for attorney general, Joseph M. Suggs Jr. for state treasurer, and

Barbara B. Kennelly Barbara Bailey Kennelly (born Barbara Ann Bailey; born July 10, 1936) is an American politician. She is the former Democratic member of the United States House of Representatives from Connecticut. Family and Education Kennelly was born Barbara ...

for representative in the 1st congressional district. The party also endorsed the

Democratic Party Democratic Party most often refers to: *Democratic Party (United States) Democratic Party and similar terms may also refer to: Active parties Africa * Botswana Democratic Party * Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea *Gabonese Democratic Party *De ...

candidacies of state representative Miles S. Rapoport for secretary of state, and Charlotte Koskoff for representative in the 6th congressional district. In the 2nd congressional district the party ran its own candidate, David Bingham, who finished third in a three-way race with 14.90%. However, without its own statewide officeholder, the party faded from view by the late 1990s. The party stopped running its own candidates in 1998. Starting in 2021 there is an ongoing effort to revive the party in

West Hartford West Hartford is a town in Hartford County, Connecticut, United States, west of downtown Hartford. The population was 64,083 at the 2020 census. The town's popular downtown area is colloquially known as "West Hartford Center," or simply "The C ...

, however, this new party of the same name shares no legal relation to A Connecticut Party.

References

External links

Official website (2021 revival)
Defunct political parties in the United States Political parties in Connecticut Regional and state political parties in the United States 1990 establishments in Connecticut Political parties established in 1990 Political history of Connecticut Political parties disestablished in the 1990s 1990s disestablishments in Connecticut {{US-party-stub