How Do Primary Candidates Get On The Ballot?

Mathew Biadun | News-Editor

2026 is shaping up to be quite the shake-up for Connecticut's steady political habits. Several incumbent Democratic politicians are facing primary challenges this year; a rare move in a state where incumbents can stick around for decades. In Congress, John Larson (D-1), Joe Courtney (D-2), and Rosa DeLauro (D-3) are all seeing primary challengers, with John Larson's considered the most competitive. On the state level, both Governor Ned Lamont, a two-term incumbent, and Rep. Pat Dillon, a twenty-term incumbent, are also seeing challenges.

Before being able to properly mount a fight, however, primary challengers face two major difficulties: raising money, and getting on the ballot.

Incumbents tend to always have a significant advantage in fundraising, garnering large war-chests of donations over their time in office which tend to be impossible for a grassroots challenger to beat. The sign of a primary challenge being serious tends to come from large fundraising talent; a common reason why former Hartford Mayor Luke Bronin is seen as a serious challenge to John Larson, as Bronin has outraised Larson so far. Fundraising money will be crucial to reach registered party voters ahead of a primary.

Technically, however, a primary may not be needed. Before a primary takes place, parties hold nominating conventions, where party delegates sent from town committees come together to vote on Congressional and statewide candidates. A primary challenger could secure his party's nomination over an incumbent through the nominating process by securing a majority of delegates. This, however, is extremely rare and unlikely.

The key element of a nominating convention, instead, is the ability to cause a primary election. Per state law, if any candidate in a nominating convention gets over 15% of the delegates' vote, a primary election will be held. Getting enough delegates together to force a primary is the major goal of most primary challengers, with the hopes that regular party-members, rather than the inner-party operators that tend to serve as delegates, could be convinced to vote for them.

Should a candidate fail to get 15%, only one option remains: petitioning. Candidates can petition to force a primary by garnering signatures from registered party members. However, while this strategy can work in local races, it is seen as almost impossible for a congressional or statewide candidate. A petition requires 2% of registered party members within the district to sign for it. That number, for example, 15,800 for Governor. State law gives candidates just 42 days to gather those signatures; a timeframe viewed as impossible by most.

State party conventions will be held later this year at the start of summer. If primaries occur, they will happen around September.