Connecticut Sen. Richard Blumenthal said Wednesday that he looks forward to being on the ballot again in 2028, even as he stopped short of a formal campaign announcement. The 80-year-old Democrat made the remarks during a post-election gathering with Connecticut Democrats outside the state Capitol in Hartford, where the party was celebrating election victories across the state and the country.
“I don't have a formal announcement today, but I look forward to being on the ballot in 2028 and continuing to serve the people of Connecticut,” Blumenthal said, according to CT Mirror. The news organization reported that Blumenthal, 80, would need to decide whether to run again when his third term expires in two years — though Connecticut Public described that same expiring term as his fourth, a discrepancy the two outlets have not reconciled.
The senator's comments Wednesday echoed what he'd said the night before at a Democratic victory party at Dunkin' Park in downtown Hartford, where he told supporters he felt fantastic about 2028, according to the Hartford Courant. If reelected to a full six-year term, Blumenthal would be 88 by the time it ended.
No Announcement, but Money Already Moving
Blumenthal has been careful for months to distinguish between preparing for a campaign and declaring one. Back in August, he told The Connecticut Mirror he already had a campaign committee in place. “I have a campaign committee,” he said at the time. “I haven't announced anything. I'm raising money,” he added, saying his focus that month was on electing Democrats in November, per the same account.
He struck a similar note in mid-August when speaking with the Hartford Courant, saying, “I haven't announced anything. I'm raising money, but my focus is on November.” A CT Insider columnist has already weighed in on where things are headed, writing that Blumenthal appears likely to seek what the columnist described as a fourth six-year term — while acknowledging Blumenthal himself has not said he's running. “It appears the answer is yes, he will run,” the CT Insider column stated.
A Long Résumé Built Since the Carter Administration
Blumenthal's political career in Connecticut stretches back decades. He became U.S. attorney for Connecticut at age 31 in 1977 under President Jimmy Carter, then served in the state legislature before spending 20 years as state attorney general, winning five elections to that office. He has since won three U.S. Senate elections, defeating Linda McMahon in 2010, Dan Carter in 2016 and Leora Levy in 2022 — a track record that has given him what supporters point to as high name recognition and an extensive fundraising network across the state.
At Wednesday's event, Blumenthal also said he supports Chuck Schumer and expects him to be chosen again as Senate Democratic leader, a position Schumer has held for nearly 10 years.
Age Question Already Surfaced in a Connecticut Primary
The question of whether Blumenthal should run again has already come up in Connecticut politics this year. During a four-way Democratic primary debate for Connecticut's 1st Congressional District in July, candidates were asked whether Blumenthal should seek reelection given his age; three of the four candidates said he should not, according to the dossier of reporting on the race. One of those candidates, Luke Bronin, said it was time for Blumenthal not to seek reelection.
Bronin went on to defeat incumbent Rep. John B. Larson in the Aug. 11 Democratic primary and was elected to Congress on Tuesday after soundly beating his Republican challenger, Connecticut Public reported. Larson, for his part, said the decision on whether Blumenthal should run again was up to Blumenthal himself. CT Mirror has reported that Democrats have privately wondered — mostly quietly, out of a desire not to offend the senator — whether Bronin's successful run against Larson offered a template someone else could use to challenge Blumenthal.
A National Debate Over Age in the Senate
Connecticut's dynamic mirrors a broader national conversation about generational change in the Senate. According to Roll Call, ten nonincumbents under 50 are running across the 16 Senate races considered in play this cycle, eight of them Democrats. The outlet noted that across the previous four freshman classes, the average age of a newly elected senator has ranged from 50 to 58, even as the Senate's overall average age stood at nearly 64 at the start of this Congress.
A New America analyst told Roll Call that a lot of voters are seeking younger, fresher candidates in the wake of the 2024 experience, when Joe Biden declined to run for reelection and Kamala Harris was subsequently defeated by Republican Donald Trump. A CT Insider columnist has floated several Connecticut Democrats as possible successors or future Senate contenders, including Attorney General William Tong, Rep. Jahana Hayes, Rep. Jim Himes and Lieutenant Gov. Susan Bysiewicz — though that list reflects the columnist's own assessment rather than any confirmed field of candidates.
For now, Blumenthal has said only that he looks forward to being on the ballot in 2028, with no formal announcement yet on the record from the senator himself.
