Newcomer Democrat Jillian Gilchrest defeats Republican Mary Fay in West Hartford's 18th House District.

She Says She Will Bring Fresh Ideas, Perspective To The Capitol

WEST HARTFORD – Democrat Jillian Gilchrest claimed victory in the 18th House District race Tuesday night at a celebration at Rockledge Golf Course in West Hartford.

Gilchrest, 36, was challenged by firsttime Republican town councilor Mary Fay, 57, for the seat held by longstanding Democrat Andy Fleischmann. Fleischmann lost a primary election to Gilchrest in August.

“What that shows me is that for the last two years, the power of people has been tremendous to combat the hate and hypocrisy from the Trump administration,” Gilchrest said. “From marches to phone calls, to letter writing, to doorknocking — the advocacy is tremendous.”

Gilchrest thanked her team: “A team of just amazing people who, when I said nine months ago, ‘There’s something I want to do’ you all just got behind meand joined me and we fought hard and we won.”

Fay did not respond to a phone call or text messages seeking comment.

Preliminary election results at the Democratic town committee celebration indicated Gilchrest had about 72 percent over Fay, but absentee ballots were not included in their reporting.

Gilchrest and Fay were largely divided on a variety of issues — Gilchrest supports tolls and legal marijuana, while Fay took a hard stance against raising taxes, does not support tolls or the legal sale of marijuana.

The Gilchrest-Fay faceoff was the only contested state representative race in town — Democrat incumbents Derek Slap in the 19th District, and Joe Verrengia in the 20th District, ran unopposed.

Gilchrest said she was inspired by the energy surrounding the Women’s March in 2017 and knew it would take a primary race to unseat Fleischmann. She spoke critically of the West Hartford Democratic town committee, calling its leadership a “good ol’ boys club.”

Gilchrest, the director of health and professional outreach at the Connecticut Coalition Against Domestic Violence, maintained that she will bring fresh ideas and a different perspective to the Capitol. She said she’ll be a more accessible leader who spearheads change.

Gilchrest’s campaign efforts began in February — when she sought support before an anticipated primary against Fleischmann, who has held the state representative seat for 12 terms. In October, the campaign knocked on registered Democrats’ and unaffiliated voters’ doors.

Gilchrest served two years on the West Hartford School Board — from 2013 to 2015 — when Charter Oak school was being rebuilt and advocated for before- and after-school care for kindergarten and pre-K students.

She has said that she thinks the education cost-sharing grant formula, which distributes about $2 billion a year to local school districts, needs to be fixed and “not based on political agreements and disagreements.”

She supports the idea of tolls and thinks there’s a need for tax reform, getting rid of a tax on social security benefits and creating a tax on sugary drinks. She has said she thinks it is “just bizarre” for legislators to have pensions.

Gilchrest has said that in order for the state to be more business-friendly, leaders should institute policies like paid family and medical leave. She said there needs to be a focus on building up Connecticut’s cities.

The nearly 40-person campaign fiercely tackled social media — offering an insider look at the campaign’s work through Instagram and Facebook. Her grassroots campaign ahead of the primary met regularly in her Fern Street home.

Gilchrest grew up in Cornwall, N.Y., before attending UConn. Her and her husband moved to West Hartford about 10 years ago. She and her husband Evan have two children attending Morley Elementary School.