CARNEY, PUGLIESE ENDORSED BY RESPECTIVE PARTIES FOR 23RD STATE HOUSE SEAT

Incumbent state Rep. Devin Carney, R-Old Lyme, and Democratic challenger Matt Pugliese won endorsements from their respective parties for the 23rd House District seat that encompasses Lyme, Old Lyme, Old Saybrook and part of Westbrook.

Republican delegates unanimously endorsed Carney at the 23rd District convention on May 16 at the Teresa Mulvey Municipal Building in Westbrook, according to a news release. Carney was named the highest ranked House Republican of the General Assembly’s Transportation Committee and is also a member of the Finance, Revenue and Bonding Committee and the Environment Committee, the release states. He is running for his third term as state representative.

“I have worked incredibly hard over the past four years as state representative and always put the people of the district first,” Carney said in a statement. “In these past two terms, I have advocated for small businesses and small towns, opposed massive tax increases, and worked across the aisle in order to achieve the best legislative results for the people of Lyme, Old Lyme, Old Saybrook, and Westbrook.”

District delegates unanimously nominated Pugliese as the Democratic candidate at their May 16 convention at the Vicky Duffy Pavilion in Old Saybrook, according to a news release. Pugliese, a resident of Old Saybrook, is the executive producer and managing director of Connecticut Repertory Theatre and the chairman of Old Saybrook’s Economic Development Commission, the release states. He announced in March that he is seeking his first term to represent the 23rd District.

“I’m a Democrat. I’ve always believed that the Democratic party valued everyone, especially those [who] didn’t have a voice,” Pugliese said in a statement. “I will represent everyone in our community. I believe in communication, in compromise and consensus building. That is the style of leadership and the values I promise to bring to Hartford.”