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WILLIAM TONG CAMPAIGN
After 10 years in the state legislature, William Tong wants to become Connecticut's top law enforcement officer. |
By Brittney Le
ASAM NEWS
SIXTH-TERM CONNECTICUT State Representative William Tong officially announced today (April 9) his candidacy in becoming the state’s next attorney general, reports the Connecticut Post.
To get there, he would have to win the Democratic nomination next month and win the election in November.
To get there, he would have to win the Democratic nomination next month and win the election in November.
“I’m excited to announce I am running for attorney general,” Tong told Hearst Connecticut Media. Just in January, the Hartford Courant reported that Tong was still only considering joining the race, but now he has officially committed.
"The Attorney General is the first and last line of defense against the powerful forces bearing down on us in Connecticut," he said in a statement.
Born to Chinese immigrant parents, he graduated from Brown University and the University of Chicago Law School.
"The Attorney General is the first and last line of defense against the powerful forces bearing down on us in Connecticut," he said in a statement.
Born to Chinese immigrant parents, he graduated from Brown University and the University of Chicago Law School.
“This is deeply personal for me,” said Tong. “It feels like Donald Trump and the people who support him are coming after me and my family. It feels like the president has declared war on you and your family.”
Last August Tong was re-elected for the sixth time as Representative of the 147th district, that includes the city of Stamford.
Tong is currently co-chairman of the General Assembly’s law-writing Judiciary Committee and is former co-chairman of the Banking Committee, during which he rewrote state lending rules, making it safer for people to keep their homes during foreclosures.
He claimed he was proud to have pushed through the state’s same-sex marriage laws after Connecticut’s Supreme Court ruled civil unions separate and unequal under the law. Tong
took on the National Rifle Association and won, protecting victims of domestic violence by taking guns away from their abusers. “We have done tremendous things here in Connecticut to make it safer,” said Tong, referring to the state’s 2013 response to gun-safety issues after the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting. He also fought for the recent Connecticut ban on so-called ghost guns and bump stocks.
He claimed he was proud to have pushed through the state’s same-sex marriage laws after Connecticut’s Supreme Court ruled civil unions separate and unequal under the law. Tong
took on the National Rifle Association and won, protecting victims of domestic violence by taking guns away from their abusers. “We have done tremendous things here in Connecticut to make it safer,” said Tong, referring to the state’s 2013 response to gun-safety issues after the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting. He also fought for the recent Connecticut ban on so-called ghost guns and bump stocks.
Tong has also warned that Republicans have drastically changed the state’s procedures for confirming judicial nominees when they rejected Andrew McDonald for chief justice candidacy.
“They want to tear down the wall between the judiciary and the other branches of government,” said Tong. “What happens if a future Republican governor makes nominations and Democrats oppose them? That is a crisis.”
Tong has been a champion for immigrant rights, pushing for reduction of misdemeanor sentences in order to limit deferral to ICE and deportations.
Democratic candidates for attorney general include Sen. Paul Doyle, former U.S. prosecutor Chris Mattei, Rep. Mike D’Agostino, and Clare Kindall, assistant attorney general under incumbent Attorney General George Jepsen.)
(Views From the Edge contributed to this article.
(Views From the Edge contributed to this article.
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