Republican State Rep Abruptly REPLACED

Connecticut State Senate Minority Leader Kevin Kelly abruptly resigned on Friday.

Kelly will be replaced by State Senator Stephen Harding after failing to secure a vote of confidence from his fellow GOP lawmakers.

The GOP state rep stated that he will be working ‘collaboratively’ with Sen. Harding going forward.

Not much is currently known about the reason former Minority Leader Kevin Kelly abruptly departed from the Connecticut Senate.

However, Kelly’s resignation comes a few, short weeks after the former Minority leader fired state GOP Chief of Staff John Healey—could the two developments be related? Multiple outlets confirmed:

Confirmed by my colleague @news12ctsudol: Kevin Kelly out as @CTSenateGOP leader

Official statement coming soon https://t.co/PSt3582xF1

— John Craven (@johncraven1) February 16, 2024

BREAKING : Sen. Kevin Kelly resigns abruptly Friday as Senate GOP leader; being replaced by first-term senator; news broken by Hartford Courant columnist Kevin F. Rennie

— Christopher Keating (@chrispkeating) February 16, 2024

Connecticut Mirror had more:

His successor is Sen. Stephen Harding, a first-term senator from Brookfield who served in the House for four terms before his election to the sprawling 30th Senate District covering 18 communities in western Connecticut.

“I am honored to have been chosen by our caucus to succeed Sen. Kelly as caucus leader,” Harding said in a written statement.

Kim-Marie Mullin stated: “Congrats to State Sen. Stephen Harding as he begins his new role as the CT State Senate Minority Leader. Looking forward to a new direction under his leadership!”

Congrats to State Sen. Stephen Harding as he begins his new role as the CT State Senate Minority Leader.

Looking forward to a new direction under his leadership! 🇺🇸https://t.co/IhBkxP17JV

— Kim-Marie Mullin (@KimMarieMullin) February 17, 2024

CT Senate GOP forces Kevin Kelly out as minority leader https://t.co/mUaFLhnwHW pic.twitter.com/nTsO1ULAZU

— Connecticut Mirror (@CTMirror) February 16, 2024

Washington Examiner shared this statement from Kelly:

“I have been incredibly honored to serve as the leader of this caucus and will work collaboratively with Sen. Harding going forward.

Our caucus is made up of hard-working individuals who love our state and are ready to fight for it.

Together we continue to stand up for policies that make our state more affordable for all people by reducing tax burdens on poor, working- and middle-class families, creating opportunities in education and jobs, and increasing health care access and affordability.”