When Luke Bronin (D) won last week’s Democratic primary for a House seat to represent Connecticut, it sent a stark message to party leadership and aging incumbents: CT voters are ready for younger leadership.
Could U.S. Senator Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) be next to face a challenge from a younger candidate?
Blumenthal will be 82 on Election Day in 2028. He has served three six-year terms in Congress's upper chamber and is raising money to run for a fourth. If he were reelected, he would be 88 at the end of his fourth term.
He’s not ready to announce whether or not he’ll run. However, he said his age isn’t impacting his job.
“Age is a state of mind, more than a time of life, I feel,” Blumenthal said on Monday after an unrelated press conference. “I am very, very happy doing my job right now, as energetically as I feel is appropriate, and I feel good about it.”
“My focus right now is on doing my job, working and fighting for the people of Connecticut, and electing Democrats in 2026,” Blumenthal continued. “There'll be plenty of time to talk about 2028. No secret, I have a campaign committee. It's raising money. I'm not prepared to make any announcement at this point.”
Blumenthal isn’t the oldest member of Connecticut’s federal delegation. That accolade belongs to 83-year-old Rosa DeLauro, the delegation's Dean, who is up for re-election this November. DeLauro has served in the U.S. House since 1991.
The median age of Connecticut’s delegation is 68.5. The median age of Congress is lower — 64 for Senators, 57 for Representatives.
