After spending more than 45 years representing New Haven in the state legislature — including as the longest-serving leader in the history of the state Senate — Martin Looney announced on Saturday that he won’t be running for reelection this year. “I was raised by New Deal Democratic imm igrant parents and believe to my core that enlightened public policy can deliver positive transformation when government takes its obligations seriously,” Looney is quoted as saying in an email press release sent out on Saturday. “I have spent more than four decades in the Capitol, believing that government, when it is honest, purposeful, and willing to make hard choices, is a singularly powerful tool available to a democratic society for advancing human dignity. That belief has not wavered.” Looney, a 77-year-old Democrat, has long been one of the most accomplished progressives in state government. He lead the way on the passage of a $15 minimum wage with built-in annual increases, the adoption of a statewide paid family and medical leave program, and, most recently, the striking of a budget deal with Gov. Ned Lamont that will send $270 million in municipal and education aid to towns and cities across Connecticut. Click here to read a February 2026 profile of Looney by CT Mirror’s Mark Pazniokas, and click here, here, here, and here to read more about his legislative priorities as he’s helmed the state Senate over the years. “I am grateful for the service of Marty Looney, who has been a steady, principled voice in the Connecticut General Assembly for working families and the kind of patient, serious legislating that produces lasting results,” Lamont is quoted as saying in a separate email press release sent out on Saturday. Lamont pointed to their work together on boosting the Earned Income Tax Credit and raising the minimum wage. He also spoke about their shared love of American history, including for Calvin Coolidge, “or ‘Silent Cal’ – a man who understood that not every moment required a speech. We’d laugh that the Connecticut Senate could use a few more Silent Cals, but our state is lucky that Marty is anything but ‘silent.’” A born and raised New Havener, Looney has represented the 11th district in the state Senate since 1993. That district covers parts of Hamden and New Haven, including Looney’s longtime home neighborhood of Morris Cove. (Looney grew up in Fair Haven.) Before ascending to the senate, Looney represented the 96th district in the state House of Representatives from 1981 to 1993. Looney has also served as the state senate’s president pro tempore since 2015 — the longest tenure of anyone to hold that top legislative role. He had previously filed to run for another two-year term before announcing on Saturday his decision to retire. His comes departure opens up a New Haven state senate seat for the first time in more than a decade, when Toni Harp stepped down from her role representing the 10th district in order to successfully run for New Haven mayor in 2013. Looney’s sole New Haven colleague in the state senate, Gary Winfield, has held that seat ever since winning a special election in 2014. Online state records show that Looney is the only candidate so far this year to have filed to run for the 11th district seat in the November general election. See below for Looney’s full email announcement on Saturday. Senate President Pro Tempore Martin M. Looney Announces He Will Not Seek Reelection in 2026 HARTFORD — Senate President Pro Tempore Martin M. Looney (D-New Haven) announced today that he will not seek reelection to the Connecticut State Senate in 2026, concluding a 46-year legislative career that began in 1981. Senator Looney has represented the 11th Senate District, encompassing New Haven and parts of Hamden, since 1993, and has served in the Connecticut General Assembly since 1981. He is the longest-serving Senate President Pro Tempore (2015 to present) and, prior to that time, he was the longest-serving Senate Majority Leader (2003 to 2015) in Connecticut’s history. Understanding the time limits of the end of session and true to his passion to ensure passage of meaningful legislation, a celebration of Senator Looney’s work will be held in late May, not during the final days of the 2026 General Assembly session. Senator Looney released the following statement: “Serving the people of Connecticut in the General Assembly for 46 years has been the great privilege of my public life, and it is not a privilege I have ever taken lightly. To this day, I still find it hard to believe that a child of Irish immigrant parents and growing up in the Fair Haven section of New Haven became the longest-serving Senate Majority Leader and Senate President in state history. In many ways, I grew up and grew old in the General Assembly. I was elected to the House unmarried and now leave with three amazing grandchildren. I entered the General Assembly before I began law school and went on to be engaged at a leadership level with every issue pending before the State Senate for the last 24 years. After all this time, I want to leave the General Assembly while more people are still encouraging me to stay than to leave. I believe that after many years in Senate leadership, the time has come for someone else to take the helm. I have the utmost confidence that the Senate Democratic caucus will continue to produce superb public policy under the leadership of Senator Bob Duff, who is primed and supremely ready for the challenge. “No career of this length is sustained without the love, support, and sacrifice of those who are closest. My loving wife Ellen has been my partner, confidant, and source of comfort and strength through it all, and I am more grateful to her than I can adequately express in any statement. My son Michael and my grandchildren, Matthew, Anna, and Isabel, have reminded me, across all the years, sessions, and late nights this work demands, of what a commitment to public life means in all respects. They are my greatest joy. I am grateful to my colleagues in the General Assembly, past and present, and to Senate Majority Leader Bob Duff for his partnership and his friendship. I am grateful to our Chief of Staff Courtney Cullinan and former Chief of Staff Vinnie Mauro, whose dedication made our caucus’s work possible, and to the constituents of the 11th Senate District and, before that, the 96th House District, who have honored me with their trust across so many years. “I was raised by New Deal Democratic immigrant parents and believe to my core that enlightened public policy can deliver positive transformation when government takes its obligations seriously. I have spent more than four decades in the Capitol, believing that government, when it is honest, purposeful, and willing to make hard choices, is a singularly powerful tool available to a democratic society for advancing human dignity. That belief has not wavered.” The post Looney Won’t Seek Reelection appeared first on New Haven Independent. ...read more read less