Connecticut Governor's Race Results: Voting Returns Close to a Tie

By rich.scinto (Patch Staff)

Gov. Dannel Malloy and challenger Tom Foley remained neck and neck in vote totals as precinct reports roll in. The Democrat and Republican remained within a few points of each other, and fewer and fewer points as the vote counting continues.

As of 10:25 p.m., with 31 percent of precincts reporting, Foley has 50 percent (163,031 votes)to Malloy’s 49 percent (161,176), with Visconti trailing at 1 percent (3,590). That’s with a total of 218 out of 701 precincts reporting.

Update 10:04 p.m.: Mark Pazniokas of the Connecticut Mirror news website,tweets: “Malloy wins New Haven by 19,000 votes, beating his 2010 number. Overall, however, it looks like a long, tense night.”

With 26 percent of precints reporting results, the Connecticut Post says, Foley has taken the lead with 50 percent, Malloy at 49 and Visconti at 1. Foley has 131,279 votes so far; Malloy, 130,547 (that’s a difference of 732 votes); Visconti, 2,970. That’s with 185 of 701 precincts.

Update 9:54 p.m.: The Connecticut Post reports that 23 percent of precincts are now reporting (158 of 701), but the percentage hasn’t changed: 50 percent for Malloy, 49 percent for Foley: Malloy has 111,502, Foley has 110,902; Visconti has 2,514 (1 percent of the total).

Update 9:51 p.m.: The precinct reports continue to tighten, now with 20 percent of precincts in, the Connecticut Post reports Malloy at 50 percent, Foley at 49 percent, Visconti at 1 percent. That’s 97,038 for Malloy; 94,790 for Foley and Visconti with 2,123 votes. A total of 113 precints out of 701 has reported.

Update 9:43 p.m.: With 16 percent of precincts reporting, Malloy has 51 percent to Foley’s 48 percent, according to the Connecticut Post., with Visconti still at 1 percent. That’s 83,677 votes for Malloy, 79,560 for Foley and 1,867 for Visconti.

Update 9:36 p.m.: Now, with 14 percent of precinct results in, it’s Malloy 52 percent (72,239), Foley 47 percent (66,058) and Visconti at 1 percent (926), according to the Connecticut Post. That’s from 98 of 701 precincts, according to the Post.

Update 9:23 p.m.: With 12 percent in, Connecticut Post says, it’s Malloy 53 percent (61,382), Foley 46 percent (53,395), Visconti 1 percent (1,251). That’s with 81 of 703 precincts reporting, according to the Post.

Update 9:16 p.m.: The Connecticut Post reports, with 8 percent of precincts in: Malloy, 54 percent (40,065); Foley, 45 percent (30,188); Visconti, 1 percent (714).

Update 9:13 p.m.: Now with 6 percent reporting, the percentage for Malloy is unchanged at 57 percent (32,504); for Foley, 42 percent (24,440); Visconti, 1 percent (565), according to NBC Connecticut.

Update 9:04 p.m.: Associated Press, with the same numbers as NBC Connecticut, adds that this represents 35 precincts out of 701 statewide.

Update 9:00 p.m.: With 5 percent of precincts reporting, Malloy’s still at 57 percent of the votes (24,459) to Foley’s 43 percent (18,386) and Visconti’s 1 percent (372), according to NBC Connecticut.

Update 8:51 p.m.: With 3 percent of precincts reporting, Malloy has 57 percent of the votes (14,831) to Foley’s 42 percent (10,016) and Visconti’s 1 percent (216), according to NBC Connecticut.

Update 7:46 p.m.: New Haven’s staffing shortage is causing issues as many turned out for same day voter registration. Some people at the back of the line won’t likely be able to vote, according to Fox CT.

Update 7:20 p.m.: Secretary of the State Denise Merrill is referring the actions of Hartford’s Registrars of Voters to the State Elections Enforcement Commission for investigation.

Update 6:10 p.m.: Update: Registrator of Voters: Ballot Mixup Shouldn’t Mean An Election Do-Over in Greenwich’s 150th District?

Wrong Ballots Passed Out Briefly in Naugatuck

Update: 6 p.m.: A Superior Court judge ruled that two voting locations in Hartfordwould stay open an extra half an hour after locations didn’t receive voter registration records.

Update 2:20 p.m.: Malloy, U.S. Sen. Chris Murphy and Hartford Mayor Pedro Segarra will hold a press conference at 4 p.m. regarding the voting situation in the city earlier this morning.

Update: 1:50 p.m.: A hearing is expected in court after the Malloy campaign filed to have voting hours extended in Hartford due to problems earlier in the day, according to NBC Connecticut.

Update: 12:30 p.m.: The FiveThirtyEight blog has upgraded Malloy’s chance of winning to 59 percent.

Update: 12:20 p.m.: Secretary of the State Denise Merrill said that turnout around noon was approximately 17 percent, which is on target for 55 percent turnout by the end of the day.

Update 11:55 a.m.: Malloy’s campaign is heading to court to ask a judge to extend Hartford voting hours after the debacle in the city this morning, according to CT News Junkie. Hartford Democratic registrar of voters blamed the delay this morning on staff reductions and budget cut, according to the Connecticut Mirror.Republican state chairman Jerry Labriola Jr. said the state GOP would object to keeping Hartford polls open longer.

Update 9 a.m.: It didn’t take long for something to go wrong with voting in Connecticut. Reports are coming in that several Hartford polling locations didn’t receive voter lists this morning, according to WNPR. Even Gov. Dannel Malloy was delayed about 35 minutes. Secretary of the State officials are working with Hartford polling locations to resolve the issue, but in the meantime many voters have said they left.

Connecticut voters are going to the polls today in what is anticipated to be one of the closest gubernatorial elections in the country.

Incumbent Gov. Dannel Malloy is going into Election Day with a three percent lead over Republican challenger Tom Foley, according to the Quinnipiac University Poll.The FiveThirtyEight blog put Malloy’s chances of winning at 56 percent, which is still the closest gubernatorial race in the country; last week he had a 50 percent chance of winning. Malloy is predicted to win by just .6 percent.

Malloy beat Foley by less than 6,500 votes in 2010.

The two candidates didn’t hold back during their last scheduled debate Monday on radio station 99.1 WPLR.

Related:

Foley Profile

Malloy Profile

Connecticut’s gubernatorial race has drawn both Democrat and Republican superstars to the state to stump for candidates. President Barack Obama appeared in Bridgeport on Sunday to help rally the base in the state’s most populous city.

First Lady Michelle Obama appeared in New Haven last week and Bill Clintonappeared in Hartford in mid-October.

Republicans brought in New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie multiple times and Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal also helped campaign for Foley.

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