The Winner

If you live in Connecticut’s 2nd Congressional District, Rep. Joe Courtney (D-CT) will represent you for an 11th term. Courtney defeated Republican George Austin, and the race was called around 11 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 3, CT News Junkie reported. ​

With about 98% of the expected vote counted, Courtney had about 62% to Austin’s 38%, according to NBC News results. The results stay unofficial until the Connecticut Secretary of the State certifies them.

The Race

George Austin is a 38-year-old Suffield construction business owner making his first run for office, and he also ran on the Independent Party line. Both he and Courtney were unopposed in their Aug. 11 primaries. Austin’s share trailed the 40% that Republican Mike France won against Courtney in 2022.

Cook Political Report and Inside Elections rated the race Solid Democratic, and Sabato’s Crystal Ball rated it Safe Democratic, according to Ballotpedia. Courtney first won the seat in 2006 by 83 votes, earning the nickname “Landslide Joe.”

The district covers eastern Connecticut, from the shoreline to the rural Quiet Corner, and is the state’s most rural congressional district. About 722,200 people live there, the median age is about 43 and the typical household earns about $97,500 a year.

About 40% of adults hold at least a bachelor’s degree, and residents are about 80% white, 10% Hispanic, 4% Black and 4% Asian. The unemployment rate is about 4.9%, and about 8% of residents live below the poverty line.

What’s Next

Courtney’s 11th term begins Jan. 3, 2027, when Democrats take control of the House. Courtney is the top Democrat on the House Armed Services Subcommittee on Seapower and Projection Forces and could become its chair in the new majority, Connecticut Public reported before the election.

He has pointed to a $76.6 billion submarine contract announced in July that he says could keep work at Electric Boat in Groton into the 2040s.

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