The towns of Fairfield and Trumbull were honored Thursday in separate ceremonies with the Democracy Cup for having the highest voter turnout in the 2025 municipal elections.
Secretary of the State Stephanie Thomas made the trip to both Trumbull and Fairfield Thursday to present elected officials with the trophy for securing the largest voter turnout in their specified category. At the Fairfield ceremony that drew about 40 or so people Thomas added some levity to the honor poking fun at the size of the trophy that is awarded in a municipal year election.
“Someone 26 years ago did not underwrite the cost of a lovely cup (for municipal election turnout), but you get to keep it,” she said. “It’s not quite as majestic, but it’s equally as impactful. I think it is more impactful because it’s municipal elections where we don’t see a lot of people coming out to vote.”
She cited typical statewide figures for presidential elections where voter turnout is 75%, congressional elections where it is about 50% but until recently in municipal elections turnout has dropped to 33%.
“Turnout depends on the dedication of local election officials who ensure every election runs smoothly,” Thomas said. “From maintaining accurate voter rolls to educating voters and providing options like early voting, their work makes it possible for every eligible resident to have their voice heard.”
For Fairfield, 44.22% of the eligible voters in the town with a population of 65,300 voted. That was enough to edge out Danbury in the city category (those municipalities with more than 65,000 residents). Danbury had a voter turnout of 41.8% with a population of 88,692. Norwalk finished third with 37.43% with a population of 93,661.
It marked the second straight year Fairfield took home the trophy as it attained a voter turnout of 84.5% in 2024 to secure first place in the large town category. During the November 2025 municipal election, 820,703 of Connecticut’s 2,253,748 registered voters cast their votes, resulting in a statewide turnout of 36.42%.
Fairfield First Selectperson Christine Vitale gave a shout-out to the poll workers and the town’s two universities (Fairfield University and Sacred Heart University) for their help in preparing for and administering the last election.
“We are a civic-minded community,” Vitale said. “We see it in the number of volunteers who serve on our elected boards and commissions. We see it in the volunteers who support our nonprofits. We see it on the volunteers who sit on our appointed boards and commissions.”
She is grateful for all those residents who take part in the election process, from volunteers to the voters themselves.
“The right to vote is something that should not be taken for granted,” she added. “And the more of the residents who participate in our democratic process, the better. I’m hoping that we have over 50% next year for our municipal election.”
Trumbull took home the Democracy Cup for 2025 with 52.76% turnout in the Large Town category for municipalities with 30,000 to 65,000 residents.
In a statement, Trumbull First Selectman Vicki Tesoro said winning the Democracy Cup is a great honor.
“Trumbull is a great town to live in, and Trumbull voters show up because they love their town and care about its future,” she said. “I want to thank our voters for coming to the polls and our town staff and poll workers who worked hard to make voting as smooth as possible.”
The other municipalities that won were Lyme with 66.10% turnout in the Small Town category for municipalities with fewer than 10,000 residents and Orange with 51.11% turnout in the Mid-Sized Town category for municipalities with 10,000 to 30,000 residents.
Secretary Thomas, who is from Norwalk, offered a friendly competition between Norwalk and Fairfield for voter turnout next year. They agreed to see which municipality would reach 50% turnout in the next municipal election in 2027.
“It’s on the record,” Vitale said. “Norwalk be warned.”
