A State Rep Rematch: Farnen, Leeper To Face Off Again For Fairfield District 132

FAIRFIELD, CT — It appears the November election will be round three for Brian Farnen and Rep. Jennifer Leeper, both of whom recently discussed plans to run again to represent Fairfield’s 132nd state legislative district.

The pair first faced off for the seat in a January 2020 special election, called to fill a vacancy left by former state representative Brenda Kupchick after she was elected Fairfield’s first selectwoman in 2019. Farnen, a Republican, won that race by fewer than 100 votes, but was defeated by Leeper, a Democrat, less than a year later in the 2020 general election, losing the office by less than 300 votes.

Now, Farnen is ready for a rematch.

“I feel called to service because we can do better than what we’re doing right now,” said Farnen, who works as general counsel for the Connecticut Green Bank and is also an adjunct professor at Fairfield University and the University of Connecticut.

If elected, Farnen plans to focus on reducing taxes and spending in sustainable ways that would make the state more affordable, he said. His other priorities would include strengthening consequences for repeat juvenile criminal offenders, working to keep zoning decisions local and evaluating the effect of the coronavirus pandemic on children’s mental health.

“I think the national issues really got in the way last election,” Farnen said. “I think we really need to focus on local issues and what we can fix here in Connecticut.”

Leeper noted the state’s most recent budget didn’t raise taxes, made unprecedented pension liability payments, and increased funding for mental health initiatives and teacher training. She spoke in favor of targeting the root causes of crime among young people and prevention efforts, and said she expects the legislature’s upcoming session to address mental health support for youth.

“Brian and I both ran campaigns focused on the issues and I look forward to doing that again,” Leeper said.

Leeper, who was recently named vice chair of the assembly’s Human Services Committee, noted she also intends to focus on environmental protections for the state, particularly given Fairfield’s proximity to rising sea levels.

“I think there’s no doubt this will be a close election because Fairfield is an incredibly purple community,” Leeper said. “Generally, our democracy would perform better if we had more districts that looked like the 132nd.”

The election is Nov. 8.