CT 5th Congressional District 2020: Hayes, Sullivan And Walczak

CONNECTICUT — Connecticut’s 5th Congressional District race tends to be the most competitive of the congressional races in the state. This election, incumbent Democratic candidate Jahana Hayes is seeking a second term in Congress. Longtime federal prosecutor David X. Sullivan is running under the Republican ticket, and Bruce Walczak is running under the Independent Party banner.

The district covers the northwest and some central parts of the state. Towns from Fairfield, Hartford, Litchfield and New Haven counties fall into the district.

Jahana Hayes

Jahana Hayes is running for a second term after first being elected in 2018. She is a Waterbury native and former teacher in the city who won the National Teacher of the Year award in 2016.

She sits on the House of Representatives committees for education, labor and agriculture.

She proposed the Helping Hospitals In Need Act, which would provide $100 billion in funding to battle the coronavirus and help states that had high per capita hospitalizations like Connecticut.

Hayes is a co-sponsor of the Medicare for All proposal. She also co-sponsored a bill that would allow Medicare to negotiate the price of prescription drugs for all Americans and set a $2,000 out-of-pocket maximum on prescriptions for those on Medicare.

She is in favor of expanding early childhood education so families within 150 percent of a state’s median income wouldn’t pay more than 7 percent of their income on childcare. Hayes also wants the federal government to fully fund the Individual with Disabilities in Education Act so that 40 percent of special education costs are covered by the federal government.

She also supported legislation to invest $100 billion to address critical school infrastructure needs like HVAC systems.

David X. Sullivan

Sullivan has been a federal prosecutor for 30 years. He served as the national coordinator the U.S. Department of Justice Money Laundering/Asset Forfeiture unit. He was born in Danbury and grew up in New Fairfield.

Sullivan is married to attorney Wendy Sullivan and has five children and three rescue dogs.

Sullivan said he would work toward more effective policing, including more accountability and de-escalation training, but that calls to defund the police or reallocate police funding were wrong, according to his campaign profile.

Sullivan is against Medicare for All proposals and said it would destroy Connecticut’s private insurance industry and result in thousands of jobs being lost.

He also said the U.S. needs to bring its medical supply chain back home, which can help support jobs in Connecticut and elsewhere.

Sullivan said he supports the Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act, which protects gun manufacturers and dealers from lawsuits when guns are used unlawfully.

Bruce Walczak

Walczak is a relocation consultant from Newtown. He said he is running because polarized politics is causing too much dysfunction in Washington, D.C., according to Hearst Connecticut.