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Lisa Thomas (Connecticut)

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This page was current at the end of the individual's last campaign covered by Ballotpedia. Please contact us with any updates.
Lisa Thomas
Image of Lisa Thomas

Working Families Party, Independent Party, Democratic Party

Elections and appointments
Last election

November 8, 2022

Education

Bachelor's

Vassar College

Law

University of Connecticut

Personal
Profession
Educator
Contact

Lisa Thomas (Democratic Party, Working Families Party, Independent Party) ran for election to the Connecticut State Senate to represent District 35. She lost in the general election on November 8, 2022.

Thomas completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2022. Click here to read the survey answers.

Biography

Lisa Thomas earned a bachelor's degree from Vassar College and a J.D. from the University of Connecticut. Her professional experience includes working as an educator for 36 years and founding the Future Problem Solving Program in her community.[1]

Elections

2022

See also: Connecticut State Senate elections, 2022

General election

General election for Connecticut State Senate District 35

Jeff Gordon defeated Lisa Thomas in the general election for Connecticut State Senate District 35 on November 8, 2022.

Candidate
%
Votes
Image of Jeff Gordon
Jeff Gordon (R)
 
50.6
 
20,927
Image of Lisa Thomas
Lisa Thomas (D / Working Families Party / Independent Party) Candidate Connection
 
49.4
 
20,456

Total votes: 41,383
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.

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Democratic primary election

The Democratic primary election was canceled. Lisa Thomas advanced from the Democratic primary for Connecticut State Senate District 35.

Republican primary election

The Republican primary election was canceled. Jeff Gordon advanced from the Republican primary for Connecticut State Senate District 35.

2020

See also: Connecticut State Senate elections, 2020

General election

General election for Connecticut State Senate District 35

Incumbent Dan Champagne defeated Lisa Thomas in the general election for Connecticut State Senate District 35 on November 3, 2020.

Candidate
%
Votes
Image of Dan Champagne
Dan Champagne (R)
 
50.5
 
28,763
Image of Lisa Thomas
Lisa Thomas (D / Working Families Party / Independent Party) Candidate Connection
 
49.5
 
28,138

Total votes: 56,901
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Democratic primary election

The Democratic primary election was canceled. Lisa Thomas advanced from the Democratic primary for Connecticut State Senate District 35.

Republican primary election

The Republican primary election was canceled. Incumbent Dan Champagne advanced from the Republican primary for Connecticut State Senate District 35.

Endorsements

To view Thomas' endorsements in the 2020 election, please click here.

Campaign themes

2022

Ballotpedia survey responses

See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection

Candidate Connection

Lisa Thomas completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2022. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Thomas' responses. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.

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Lisa Thomas is running for Connecticut State Senate in the 35th district. Lisa has served on the Coventry Town Council for 7 terms, including as a member of the Finance Committee, and is currently the Town Council Chairwoman. As Councilwoman she has led policy initiatives on public safety, clean energy, and fiscal management. Lisa recently retired after a 37 year career as a special education teacher, working in Hebron School District and Windsor School District. She was named Teacher of the Year at Clover Street School in Windsor. Lisa has a BA from Vassar College and a JD from UConn School of Law . She has a background in labor and employment law, and is a member of the Connecticut Bar Association. As a lifelong public school teacher, Lisa knows that each of us needs and deserves to be heard. When she first ran for local office, she was inspired by her love and support for education. With her many years as a Coventry Councilwoman fighting for constituent needs, Lisa will be a strong advocate in the Senate to bring increased attention and support to our region.
  • Fiscal Responsibility and Affordability: Lisa will remedy years of underfunded programs and services in our region. One of Lisa’s goals is to reexamine funding schools with minimal reliance on property taxes. She also believes there must be affordable housing available both to young families and to retirees in our communities. Lisa understands the important role agriculture plays in our district, and looks forward to joining the legislature’s Rural Caucus to bring more attention to our area. Lisa knows how to navigate budgets and state grants so that working people and middle-class families can afford to live in our district. She has consistently advocated for budgets that balance the needs of the community with residents’ ability to pay.
  • Healthcare and Reproductive Rights: Lisa believes we should all have quality, affordable healthcare. She is a strong advocate for women’s rights and reproductive health. She supports contraceptive equality and full access to abortion care. Lisa has been in the forefront of efforts to restore critical hospital services, including Labor and Delivery care, to our region. She knows that the loss of services has placed an unacceptable burden and risk on our families. Lisa will stand up to any effort to limit access to reproductive services and will fiercely support Connecticut’s laws enacted to protect this critical healthcare.
  • Jobs: Lisa is dedicated to bringing jobs to our district. She is committed to supporting small businesses, fighting for agriculture producers, and investing in the economic success of our area. Lisa supports the Eastern CT Manufacturing Pipeline, part of the Workforce Investment Board, which provides jobs training to meet the hiring needs of CT’s manufacturers and trades. Lisa believes in supporting paid apprenticeship programs to encourage people to enter the skilled trades. Lisa’s focus on education and economic development will drive a thriving workforce.
Education and sustainability are two areas that Lisa is extremely passionate about. As an educator of 37 years, Lisa understands that the economic success of the district is greatly impacted by the quality and equity in our schools. Lisa will fight to ensure Eastern Connecticut’s schools are fully funded, attract diverse teachers, administrators and staff, and that all students can succeed. Environmental stewardship has been another incredibly important issue to Lisa. Lisa’s advocacy has resulted in the Town of Coventry receiving yearly grants from CT DEEP to remedy the invasive plants in Coventry Lake, thus avoiding the loss of a critical recreational, environmental and economic resource. She also successfully led Coventry’s efforts to achieve 20% alternative energy reliance. Throughout her time as a Councilwoman, she has supported healthy water quality, clean energy, farmland preservation, and other sustainability initiatives. Lisa will strengthen partnerships with Eastern Connecticut’s land trusts, The Last Green Valley, farmland conservation, forestry groups, and Natural Resources Conservation Services. Partnerships like these will benefit Connecticut’s economy as well as bring apprenticeships and job training to our region. Lisa knows that natural resources are a part of what makes Eastern CT a great place to live and visit, and Lisa will carry this truth with her to the State Senate to fight for the rural communities in the 35th district.

Note: Ballotpedia reserves the right to edit Candidate Connection survey responses. Any edits made by Ballotpedia will be clearly marked with [brackets] for the public. If the candidate disagrees with an edit, he or she may request the full removal of the survey response from Ballotpedia.org. Ballotpedia does not edit or correct typographical errors unless the candidate's campaign requests it.

2020

Candidate Connection

Lisa Thomas completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2020. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Thomas' responses. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.

Expand all | Collapse all

Lisa Thomas is running for Connecticut State Senate in the 35th district as a Democrat / Independent / Working Families Party Candidate. She is a Special Education Teacher at Windsor Public schools, has been an educator for 36 years, and this past year was named Teacher of the Year at Clover Street School in Windsor. Lisa is currently serving her 6th term as Coventry Town Councilwoman, and has served as Chairwoman of the Town Council, Chairwoman of the Steering sub committee, and member of the Finance sub-committee. As Councilwoman she has led policy initiatives on public safety, green energy, and fiscal management. Lisa has a BA from Vassar College and a JD from the University of Connecticut School of Law. She has a background in labor and employment law, and is a member of the Connecticut Bar Association.
  • Economic recovery from the current pandemic is the most pressing issue facing Connecticut and a key part of my campaign. In the 35th Senate District our communities have unique needs that range from the town of Vernon with the most commercial base to Union, the smallest town in our state. It includes a large agricultural community. We must include both our small businesses and our agricultural producers in our recovery plans. Now is the time to invest in major infrastructure projects that have been delayed for too long. By focusing on education and economic development, we will bring back a thriving economy and workforce.
  • Putting our district first. Lisa was elected by Democratic and Republican councilors to be Coventry Town Council Chair. As a senator, she'll continue to work across the aisle to bring healthcare, education, and growth to Eastern Connecticut.
  • Advocacy. Lisa Thomas is a champion of safety, security, and sustainability and is deeply invested in issues of environmental justice, racial justice, and mental health care. Recognizing there is much work to be done in these areas, Lisa is ready to bring this progressive perspective into every aspect of her work in Hartford and be an advocate for justice.
Education and Sustainability are two areas that Lisa is extremely passionate about. As an educator of 36 years, Lisa understands that the economic success of the district is greatly impacted by the quality and equity in our schools. Lisa will fight to ensure Eastern Connecticut's schools are fully funded, attract diverse teachers, administrators and staff, and that all students can succeed, regardless of their zip code. Environmental justice has been another incredibly important issue to Lisa. She helped to stop Coventry Lake from being overrun by invasive species and successfully led Coventry's effort to achieve 20% alternative energy reliance by 2020. In Hartford, Lisa will advocate and form partnerships for Eastern Connecticut's protected spaces, family farms and land conservation. Lisa knows that natural resources are a part of what makes Eastern CT a great place to live and visit, and Lisa will carry this truth with her to the State Senate to fight for the rural communities in the 35th district.
One of Connecticut's greatest challenges, along with the rest of our nation, is to confront climate change and to rebuild our economy post-pandemic. Lisa understands that these two issues overlap while we continue to create jobs through our efforts to develop more green energy infrastructure.
The constituents of the 35th district deserve robust and efficient representation, not policy and reform that is plagued by partisanship and games. Lisa was elected to Coventry Town Councilwoman by a Republican majority council and was able to earn support on both sides of the political divide. As a Senator, she'll continue to work across the aisle to bring healthcare, education, and growth to Eastern Connecticut.
One of the most touching stories Lisa heard came from a homeowner in the district. This voter faced not only the impact of COVID-19 on his small business which he had to close during restrictions on large social gatherings, but also the trauma of a crumbling foundation. Despite these incredible hardships, he kept his mind focused on moving forward and supporting his kids' remote learning. He was determined that his children would succeed and find opportunities in their future. Lisa is committed to partnering with local, state and national legislators to ensure that homeowners with crumbling foundations continue to receive financial and emotional support, and that business owners get the support they need to fare this pandemic.

Note: Ballotpedia reserves the right to edit Candidate Connection survey responses. Any edits made by Ballotpedia will be clearly marked with [brackets] for the public. If the candidate disagrees with an edit, he or she may request the full removal of the survey response from Ballotpedia.org. Ballotpedia does not edit or correct typographical errors unless the candidate's campaign requests it.

See also


External links

Footnotes

  1. Information submitted to Ballotpedia through the Candidate Connection survey on September 21, 2020


Current members of the Connecticut State Senate
Leadership
Majority Leader:Bob Duff
Minority Leader:Stephen Harding
Senators
District 1
District 2
District 3
District 4
MD Rahman (D)
District 5
District 6
District 7
District 8
District 9
District 10
District 11
District 12
District 13
District 14
District 15
District 16
District 17
District 18
District 19
District 20
District 21
District 22
District 23
District 24
District 25
Bob Duff (D)
District 26
District 27
District 28
District 29
District 30
District 31
District 32
District 33
District 34
District 35
District 36
Democratic Party (25)
Republican Party (11)