HARTFORD, Conn. — Former president Donald Trump will host a fundraiser for Connecticut Republican U.S. Senate candidate Leora Levy Oct. 18 at his Mar-a-Lago golf club in Palm Beach, Florida.
Levy received direct endorsement from Trump just days ahead of her August primary upset over Themis Klarides.
“I want to congratulate everybody in that beautiful room and everybody in the state,” Trump said over speakerphone to a packed room of Levy’s supporters on primary night.
Trump’s endorsement was a key factor in Levy’s primary win, but now experts say this alignment could hurt her odds on the ballot.
“Quite frankly, when you get endorsed by President Trump, there's no way of disassociating yourself from the former president,” said Prof. Gary Rose, chairman of the government department at Sacred Heart University.
Despite attempts to downplay her tie to Trump post-primary, experts say Levy can’t deny her connection.
“She is identified straightforward, regardless of any type of attempt to move to the middle on her part, as a Trump-endorsed candidate,” Rose said. “In Connecticut, that's not going to get you a lot of votes.”
Now Levy is playing into her association in hopes of drumming up donations. Tickets for the Mar-a-Lago fundraiser start at $1,000 with $25,000 getting attendees a photo with the former president.
“I'm raising money and I've assembled a broad coalition of supporters from every end of the political spectrum, and I'm very grateful to support from wherever it comes,” said Levy.
Levy added she’s grateful for Trump's support, but says she’s her own person and it’s her name on the ballot.
“My opponent would like this race to be about President Trump, but frankly, the only president's name that I see on the ballot is Joe Biden,” Levy continued. “My opponent has voted 98.1% of the time for Biden's failed policies.”
In a state where Biden defeated Trump in 2020, voters might not be convinced.
“This is like Biden versus Trump,” Rose said. “But Trump has lower approval ratings in Connecticut, unfortunately for her, compared to the President.”
Recent polling confirms that, with 29% of likely voters saying their reason for voting in this Senate race is to show opposition to former president Donald Trump.
Levy is trailing in this race by 17 points–incumbent Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-Connecticut) is leading his Republican opponent 57 to 40%.
In a statement, Blumenthal’s campaign spokesperson Ty McEachern wrote, “Our opponent’s pilgrimage to Mar-a-Lago speaks volumes. She is Donald Trump’s choice. Sen. Blumenthal is working to be Connecticut’s choice.”
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