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Reed Wins Fifth Term in Branford's 102nd

Shortly after the polls closed November 8, early returns determined a solid win for Democratic incumbent Lonnie Reed, who has won a fifth term representing the town of Branford as the 102nd District State Representative.

Reed was joined at a celebratory Branford Democratic Party gathering at Branford's Italian-American Club, where she joined Democratic incumbent State Senate winner Ted Kennedy Jr. (District 12) in making brief victory speeches.

Reed also asked the crowd to recognize and thank her opponent, first-time Republican candidate Chris Kelly, for a good and "civil" race. Kelly came to the event together with Branford Republican Committee chairman Ray Ingraham to congratulate Reed on her win.

Early results show Reed earned 6,878 votes while Kelly received 5,068 votes from Branford electors.

"I have to say there were a lot of people during this process that wanted to talk more about what was going on national," Reed told Zip06, just moments after her re-election was announced on Nov. 8.

"And I've had people today thanking me for the civility of this race," Reed added. "We had debates that were civil. People were grateful we were running on real issues and they really liked the theme of reaching out and solving problems and stopping the blame game."

Kelly joined the race as the Republican candidate in July with the support of the Republican Town Committee (RTC) after Ingraham, who is also Branford's Representative Town Meeting Majority Leader, decided he needed to step away from the bid.

Kelly told Zip06 he was satisfied with the effort undertaken during this, his first race for a state seat, and also thanked those who supported him.

"It was amazing today. Branford as a community, their support has filled me with pure gratitude; and I look forward to continuing to serve Branford in the future" said Kelly, currently a member of Branford's Planning and Zoning Commission.

"For someone starting late and starting brand new, I'm very proud of what we've accomplished," Kelly said.

For her part, Reed's leadership in Hartford includes serving as House chair of the Energy & Technology Committee and a member of the Finance, Revenue & Bonding and Planning & Development committees. She co-chairs Long Island Sound Caucus, co-chairs the Life Sciences Caucus, is a member of the Manufacturers Caucus and of the Shoreline Preservation Task Force, and serves on the bi-state Long Island Sound Committee.

Reed told Zip06 she's energized to return to Hartford for her fifth consecutive term, adding she will continue to work across party lines to "solve problems" at the state level.

"I've been talking to my Democratic and Republican colleagues a lot," said Reed. "I've had a lot of my Republican colleagues wish me good luck and tell me they want me back there -- one told me we need to get the good people from both parties back there. Both parties have people that really want to work together, solve the problems and stop all of the negativity."