A former member of Congress who set his sights on becoming the First Selectman of Stonington, Connecticut has won.
Former U.S. Representative Rob Simmons defeated Democratic First Selectman George Crouse, a retired high school social studies teacher who took over the shoreline town's top job about 10 months ago after the previous First Selectman left town.
Simmons is a Vietnam veteran who later joined the CIA , and then went into politics. He served in the Connecticut General Assembly from 1990 until 2000. He was elected to Congress to represent Connecticut's Second District from 2001 until 2007. Simmons, a Republican, lost in the 2006 election by fewer than 100 votes to Democratic challenger Joe Courtney.
Simmons then returned to politics in 2010 and ran in the Republican primary for U.S. Senate, but he lost the nomination to World Wrestling Entertainment CEO Linda McMahon. (McMahon later lost to U.S. Senator and former Connecticut Attorney General Richard Blumenthal, who still has his seat.)
Since 2014, the 72-year-old Simmons has since been a member of the Board of Selectmen for Stonington, a town with fewer than 19,000 people. The First Selectman runs the three-person Board of Selectmen and acts as chief executive officer for the town.
Simmons ran for the leadership spot after a recent scandal in town, when former First Selectman Ed Haberek resigned to take another job in Washington state. After Haberek left Stonington, it was revealed he had sent sexually explicit text messages and photos using his town-issued phone. Habarek has since apologized for the texts. Simmons said he decided to run because he loves Stonington and believes Haberek's actions had a negative impact on morale.