Republican Ryan Fazio takes the oath of office as new senator
HARTFORD — Newly elected state Sen. Ryan Fazio was sworn in as the newest GOP member of the legislature before a vocal crowd of supporters in the Senate Chamber at the state Capitol on Thursday morning.
Surrounded by friends, family and fellow Republicans, Fazio took the oath of office from Secretary of the State Denise Merrill and spoke briefly as he officially began representing the 36th District, which covers all of Greenwich as well as portions of Stamford and New Canaan.
“I know and love our community and our state,” Fazio said after he was sworn in. “And while our state faces immense challenges, I know with a positive change in our state government that Connecticut can succeed like never before. There is always hope.”
Fazio was elected last week in a special election to fill the remainder of the term of Alex Kasser, a Democrat who resigned unexpectedly in June. She was who was elected last November to her second term, which runs through the end of 2022.
Fazio lost in a match-up against Kasser in 2020, but last week he defeated Democratic candidate Alexis Gevanter and petition candidate John Blankley in the special election.
In his remarks at the Capitol, Fazio thanked the voters for “placing their trust in me” and became emotional when speaking about his grandmother, Anne Gadaleta, who passed away Wednesday. He said she was “the person most on my mind” as he took the oath.
“No one did more to support and encourage my love of country and interest in government from the time I was very young than she did,” Fazio said. “She was the last surviving of 21 children in her Irish-Catholic family, which sounds like I’m making it up. But I’m not. It’s true.
“She was born in the Great Depression, and her family didn’t have two nickels together. But she told me that she always felt rich because she had faith in God and family and friends,” he said. “I know I am a rich man today because I have faith and family and friends. And I promise you I will always show the same faith and devotion to doing what is right as your state senator that my grandmother showed her whole life.”
At the swearing-in ceremony, Fazio led the crowd, which included his parents, stepmother, sister and a brother, in the Pledge of Allegiance.
Now that he has taken office, Fazio will soon be assigned to committees by the Republican Senate leadership. Those assignments are still under discussion, Fazio said Thursday.
In addition to his family, several prominent Greenwich political figures were on hand for the swearing in, including First Selectman Fred Camillo, who is a former state representative, as well as Selectwoman Lauren Rabin and former state Sen. L. Scott Frantz, who previously held the seat.
Fazio was also welcomed to the state Senate and the GOP caucus by Sen. Kevin Kelly, the Republican Senate minority leader. However, Democrats retain a 23 to 13 seat majority in the state Senate after this seat changed party control.
“In the first few minutes I met Ryan Fazio, it was immediately clear to me that he cares about the people he represents,” Kelly said while serving as an unofficial master of ceremonies at the event. “He cares about our state. He cares about making a difference. He embodies the next generation of Connecticut leadership.”