The retirement of Gov. Jodi Rell (R) has given Democrats their best chance at winning back the governorship in Connecticut for the first time in decades. A new Public Policy Polling (D) survey (522 RVs, 1/4-5, MoE +/- 4.3%) shows that each Democratic contender has an edge in the early going.

General Election Matchups
Bysiewicz (D) 50 -- Fedele (R) 25 -- Und 25
Bysiewicz (D) 48 -- Foley (R) 26 -- Und 27

Lamont (D) 40 -- Fedele (R) 30 -- Und 29
Lamont (D) 40 -- Foley (R) 29 -- Und 30

Malloy (D) 37 -- Fedele (R) 26 -- Und 36
Malloy (D) -- Foley (R) 27 -- Und 36

Secretary of State Susan Bysiewicz is clearly Democrats' strongest candidate at this point. But the party is eager to avoid its primary, and she told the Associated Press Thursday that she's considering switching to the attorney general race now that Richard Blumenthal is running for the U.S. Senate.

Favorable Ratings
Bysiewicz 39 / 16
Lamont 29 / 28
Malloy 18 / 15
Fedele 9 / 12
Foley 10 / 14

Rell still has a respectable job approval rating as she steps down, with 49 percent of state voters approving and 39 percent disapproving.

Posted by Mike Memoli at 11:24 AM | Email Author | Permalink

In an unexpected move, Connecticut Gov. Jodi Rell (R) announced today at 5 p.m. that she will not seek re-election.

"After much soul-searching, I have decided not to seek re-election next year," Rell said, according to the Hartford Courant.

The newspaper reported that it was "a hastily called press conference" held in her Capitol office "with her family standing by."

Connecticut is one of 18 states with Republican governors whose terms are up in 2010. Nine of the 18 had either already announced they weren't running again or were term-limited. With Rell adding to that total, now a majority of the Republican-held governorships will be open races next year.

Rell originally assumed office in July 2004 after the resignation of Republican governor John Rowland, who left before impeachment proceedings could begin. Rell was elected to a full term in 2006 with 63 percent of the vote, and she was fully expected to run for re-election next year.

Posted by Kyle Trygstad at 05:20 PM | Email Author | Permalink