Dem operative in place for Lamont’s likely reelection bid

HARTFORD — The worst-kept secret in Connecticut politics is that despite avoiding the issue, Gov. Ned Lamont is preparing to seek a second term in 2022.

The recent migration of a Mississippi-based campaign manager named Travis Brimm, is further evidence the 67-year-old incumbent from Greenwich, who spent about $20 million of his personal fortune to win in 2018, is set to ride again.

A couple weeks ago, Brimm started working in the offices of the Democratic State Central Committee, a position that gives Lamont some cover, however thin it may be. “The state party hired him,” Lamont told Hearst Connecticut Media at an event in New Haven on Thursday.

Asked if the hiring means he is announcing intentions to seek a second four-year term, Lamont said “No, but it means I’ve got options.” Blogger Kevin Rennie first reported Brimm’s installation, after Brimm managed U.S. Sen. Ben Ray Lujan’s successful 2020 campaign.

Democratic State Central Committee Chairwoman Nancy DiNardo played along on Thursday. “As we head into the next election cycles this fall and in 2022, we welcome new staff,” DiNardo said. “Travis Brimm brings great experience in both local, state and federal elections and we’re already working together on party building and voter outreach.”

Incumbent governors routinely shape the state party to reflect their reelection needs, because they carry the top of the ticket and often dictate the down-ticket turnout.

Speaker of the House Matt Ritter, D-Hartford, said Thursday he expects the governor to begin preparation. “The fact that he is beginning to think about the campaign makes sense,” Ritter said. “The election will kick off pretty much as we get into the fall, after Labor Day.”