Oberlander Wins 36th State Senate Seat
Democrat Jill Oberlander defeated Republican Joe Kelly in Connecticut's 36th state Senate District, according to unofficial results.
Updated on Nov. 4, 2026 in Elections
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Democrat Jill Oberlander won the 36th Connecticut state Senate District seat, defeating Republican candidate Joe Kelly. Unofficial results showed Oberlander with 54% of the vote to Kelly's 45%.
Why it matters
The seat was previously held by Republican state Sen. Ryan Fazio, who ran for governor, and the district has shifted parties before. Oberlander said voters opposed the breaking of governmental norms characterizing the Trump administration.
Unofficial results put Oberlander at 54% and Kelly at 45%, a margin of nine percentage points. Official certification of the final tally was not addressed in the available source material.
The players
Jill Oberlander
Oberlander is a Democrat who previously served on the Greenwich Board of Selectmen and the Greenwich Board of Estimate and Taxation before winning the state Senate seat.
Joe Kelly
Kelly is the Republican candidate who lost the 36th District race to Oberlander.
Ryan Fazio
Fazio is the Republican state senator from Greenwich who previously held the seat and later ran for governor of Connecticut.
The details
Oberlander declared victory from a table at Bosco's Bar and Grill in Old Greenwich around 10:30 p.m. on election night. The district covers Greenwich, North Stamford, and New Canaan, and Oberlander previously served on the Greenwich Board of Selectmen and the Board of Estimate and Taxation.
Timeline
2018: Democrats won the district for the first time since the 1930s.
November 3, 2026: Election night, when Oberlander declared victory around 10:30 p.m.
Seasonal Patterns
The 36th District flipped to Democrats in 2018 for the first time since the 1930s, and Oberlander's win extends that Democratic hold after Fazio returned the seat to the GOP column five years later.
Connecticut residents in Greenwich, North Stamford, and New Canaan will have Oberlander as their state senator representing them in Hartford. The change in representation affects state policy decisions made by the Senate.
The takeaway
Local voters in the 36th District chose a new state senator, and the seat's partisan history shows how quickly it can change hands. Watching certified results and future Senate votes will show how the representation shift plays out.
Further reading
Explore more coverage in Elections for Connecticut state races.
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