Two high-profile Democratic candidates for governor announced Tuesday they will join forces.
Susan Bysiewicz told supporters in New Haven that she will drop her bid for governor to become Greenwich businessman Ned Lamont's running mate. She said the Lamont/Bysiewicz ticket is "the strongest team to lead our state forward."
“Ned and I are committed to passing a balanced budget, to investing in infrastructure, to supporting small business, and to keeping our young people in our beautiful state,” said Bysiewicz.
Lamont said with Bysiewicz onboard as his choice for lieutenant governor, he hopes that delegates can support their ticket at the Democratic convention this weekend in Hartford, avoiding the situation on the Republican side where a half dozen candidates will fight it out in the primary.
“I am working, Susan is working, together we are working every day for the next three or four days to reach out to every delegate to tell them how important it is that the Democratic party be unified coming out of this convention, so we can focus on winning,” Lamont told supporters.
Both Lamont and Bysiewicz are facing a number of Democratic opponents this weekend, but they have name recognition on their side going into the convention.
Back in 2006, Lamont defeated incumbent U.S. Senator Joe Lieberman in the Democratic primary, but ended up losing to him in the general election after Lieberman ran as an independent. Bysiewicz is a former state representative and secretary of the state who ran for governor in 2010, only to change course and launch an unsuccessful run for attorney general.
