Democratic Rep. John Larson loses his primary to opponent calling for generational change

Democratic Rep. John Larson of Connecticut has lost his primary race to former Hartford Mayor Luke Bronin, NBC News projects, becoming the latest example of Democratic voters’ push to sweep out incumbent House members and replace them with younger leadership.

Larson, 78, has been a fixture in Connecticut politics, having served for more than a decade in the state Legislature and almost three decades in Congress. A former member of party leadership, he touted his work on Social Security in Congress and had been backed by the state’s congressional delegation, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., and key unions.

But Bronin, 47, mounted a serious campaign against him, calling for generational change and arguing that President Donald Trump’s second term called for new energy and new direction from Democratic lawmakers. Bronin raised more money than Larson and won over party activists at the state convention, winning the state party’s endorsement .

Larson is the 10th House member to lose a primary this year: seven Democrats and three Republicans.

“In this moment, when Donald Trump is president, the job of a member of Congress isn’t just in the subcommittee rooms, it’s what you are doing outside the walls of the Capitol to build a movement,” Bronin said in a late May interview.

“Over these next two years, it’s so important to have Democratic members of Congress using that platform not just to give red-faced speeches to an empty chamber for the C-SPAN cameras, but to ... carry our message, to win people back who lost faith in our party.”

Asked Monday on NBC News’ “Meet the Press Now” about the movement for generational change in the Democratic Party, Larson said that “I think the change that we need is to continue to go after Donald Trump” and touted his “record of doing that.”

“I have the endorsement of more elected officials, every sitting member in the congressional delegation, because they understand what I’ve been able to deliver,” he said. “They understand that they’re able to work with me, and they understand what I’ve been able to accomplish on their behalf. Luke Bronin has no record. I’m running on a record of accomplishment and achievement.”

Bronin replied that Larson has been in office “for about 50 years, and for the last 10 years or so, I just think he’s gotten stuck in a routine. And I understand, you know, it’s hard to find anybody who does the same thing for 30 years and doesn’t get a little bit stuck in the routine, but this is not a moment that we can keep doing the same thing.”