Connecticut's 5th congressional district

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Connecticut's 5th congressional district
Area 1,282 mi²
Distribution 85.9% urban, 14.1% rural
Population (2000) 681,113
Median income $53,118
Ethnic composition 80.2% White, 5.2% Black, 2.1% Asian, 10.5% Hispanic, 0.2% Native American, 0.3% other
Cook PVI D+4

The Fifth Congressional District of Connecticut is represented in Congress by Chris Murphy.

Contents

[edit] Cities and towns

The district includes all of Northwestern Connecticut, and runs from Meriden and New Britain in Central Connecticut, to Waterbury, the Litchfield Hills, and the Farmington River Valley.

It includes the towns of Avon, Bethel, Bethel, Bridgewater, Brookfield, Burlington, Canaan, Canton, Cheshire, Cornwall, Danbury, Farmington, Goshen, Harwinton, Kent, Litchfield, Meriden, Middlebury, Morris, New Britain, New Fairfield, New Milford, Newtown, Norfolk, North Canaan, Plainville, Plymouth, Roxbury, Salisbury, Sharon, Sherman, Simsbury, Southbury, Thomaston, Torrington (part), Warren, Washington, Waterbury (part), Watertown, Wolcott, Woodbury, traditionally the most conservative part of the state.

[edit] History

The area has historically been Republican, but Democratic Presidential candidate John Kerry won it by approximately 1100 votes in the 2004 Presidential election[1]. The district was Kerry's second weakest district in New England, falling behind only the Manchester-based first district of New Hampshire, which Kerry lost.

The current Fifth District was created in 2002 when reapportionment caused Connecticut to lose a house seat. As a result, the former Fifth District and Sixth District were consolidated to form a new Fifth District.

From 1964 to 1990 the Fifth District included many towns in Fairfield County now in the Fourth District such as Wilton, Monroe, Ridgefield and Shelton. It also included the lower Naugatuck Valley towns of Ansonia, Derby, Seymour and Naugatuck which are now in the Third District.

In the early 20th Century the Fifth District included Waterbury, Litchfield County and the Naugatuck Valley. It did not include any portion of Fairfield or Hartford counties and did not include the city of Meriden.

[edit] 2006 election

Voter Registration and Party Enrollment as of October 25, 2005[2]
Party Active Voters Inactive Voters Total Voters Percentage
  Democratic 114,743 5,918 120,661 29.63%
  Republican 95,084 4,836 99,920 24.54%
  Unaffiliated 174,924 10,412 185,336 45.52%
  Minor Parties 1,168 97 1,265 0.31%
Total 384,919 21,263 407,182 100%
US House election, 2006: Connecticut District 5
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Democratic Chris Murphy 122,907 56.17
Republican Nancy Johnson (inc.) 95,891 43.83
Democratic gain from Republican Swing
Turnout 218,798

[edit] Representatives

Representative Party Years District home Note
District organized from Connecticut's At-large congressional district in 1837
Lancelot Phelps Democratic March 4, 1837 – March 3, 1839
Truman Smith Whig March 4, 1839 – March 3, 1843 Declined Nomination
District eliminated by 1840 US Census
District organized from Connecticut's At-large congressional district in 1913
William Kennedy Democratic March 4, 1913 – March 3, 1915 Lost Re-election
James P. Glynn Republican March 4, 1915 – January 3, 1923 Lost Re-election
Patrick B. O'Sullivan Democratic March 4, 1923 – March 3, 1925 Lost Re-election
James P. Glynn Republican March 4, 1925 – November 4, 1930 Died
Vacant March 6, 1930 – November 4, 1930
Edward W. Goss Republican November 4, 1930 – January 3, 1935 Lost Re-election
J. Joseph Smith Democratic January 3, 1935 – November 4, 1941 Resigned on appointment as US Circuit Judge for CT
Vacant November 4, 1941 – January 20, 1942
Joseph E. Talbot Republican January 20, 1942 – January 3, 1947 Retired to run for Governor
James T. Patterson Republican January 3, 1947 – January 3, 1959 Declined Nomination
John S. Monagan Democratic January 3, 1959 – January 3, 1973 Waterbury Lost Re-election
Ronald A. Sarasin Republican January 3, 1973 – January 3, 1979 Beacon Falls Retired to run for Governor
William R. Ratchford Democratic January 3, 1979 – January 3, 1985 Danbury Lost Re-election
John G. Rowland Republican January 3, 1985 – January 3, 1991 Waterbury Retired to run for Governor
Gary Franks Republican January 3, 1991 – January 3, 1997 Waterbury Lost Re-election
James H. Maloney Democratic January 3, 1997 – January 3, 2003 Danbury Lost Re-election
Nancy Johnson Republican January 3, 2003 – January 3, 2007 New Britain Merged with 6th District 2003/Lost Re-election 2006
Chris Murphy Democratic January 3, 2007 – present Cheshire Incumbent

[edit] References

  1. ^ Connecticut's Secretary of State
  2. ^ Registration and Party Enrollment Statistics as of October 25, 2005 (PDF). Connecticut Secretary of State. Retrieved on 2006-10-02.
v • d • e
Connecticut's congressional districts
At-large 1 2 3 4 5 6
The 6th and At-large districts are obsolete.
See also: Connecticut's past & present Representatives, Senators, and Delegations
All U.S. districts – Apportionment – Redistricting – Gerrymandering – Maps