# Matt Lesser

Matt Lesser is a Democratic member of the Connecticut Senate for district 9.

- Party: Democrat
- Seat: Connecticut Senate, district 9
- Serving since: 2019-01-09
- Current term: CT 2025–26 session
- Open States ID: ocd-person/f55ef0f9-f0ed-48ba-80b9-23ac643626cc

Source: https://americaspoliticalpulse.com/p/f55ef0f9-f0ed-48ba-80b9-23ac643626cc (America’s Political Pulse, Polarization Research Lab), data through 2026-10-27. Data under CC BY 4.0. Cite as: Westwood, Sean J., and Yphtach Lelkes. 2024. America's Political Pulse [data set].

## Headline

Lesser sits at −1.06 on the CSIP scale, more liberal than 92% of State Senate Democrats.

## What Lesser says (CT 2025–26 session)

838 classified statements: 838 posts on X. Each rate is the share of statements with the label, against the State Senate Democrats average; rank 1 is the highest rate.

| Label | Lesser | State Senate Democrats average | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Personal attacks | 4.3% | 2.4% | 63 of 329 |
| Policy criticism | 19.1% | 10.3% | 58 of 329 |
| Policy discussion | 41.3% | 42.9% | 180 of 329 |
| Bipartisanship | 3.7% | 3.4% | 113 of 329 |
| Credit claiming | 10.7% | 16.1% | 193 of 329 |
| Extreme labels | 2.1% | 0.8% | 44 of 329 |

Most discussed policy areas: Health 44% (State Senate Democrats 17%); Economics and Public Finance 18% (State Senate Democrats 10%); Government Operations and Politics 7.8% (State Senate Democrats 14%); Agriculture and Food 7.2% (State Senate Democrats 4.7%); Housing and Community Development 6.4% (State Senate Democrats 6.7%).

## Ideology (CSIP)

CSIP score −1.06 (standard error 0.02), from 1,509 donors and 399 roll calls. Negative is left of 0, positive right of it, on one scale for every official. 7.9% of State Senate Democrats score lower.

## Votes (CT 2025–26 session)

863 roll calls. Attendance 99.0% (Connecticut Senate 97.8%). Party unity 99.2% (97.9%). 8 votes against the party majority.

Key votes:

- 2026-05-06 · voted yea · Senate Roll Call Vote · HB 5385 AN ACT ESTABLISHING A TASK FORCE TO STUDY UNDUE DELAY IN WORKERS' COMPENSATION CLAIMS BY POLICE OFFICERS AND FIREFIGHTERS. · pass · https://openstates.org/ct/bills/2026/HB5385/
- 2026-05-06 · voted yea · Senate Roll Call Vote · HB 5001 AN ACT CONCERNING ABSENTEE VOTING FOR ALL AND VARIOUS OTHER REFORMS RELATED TO THE ADMINISTRATION OF ELECTIONS. · pass · https://openstates.org/ct/bills/2026/HB5001/
- 2026-05-06 · voted nay · Senate Roll Call Vote · HB 5043 AN ACT CONCERNING CONVERTIBLE PISTOLS, UNFINISHED FRAMES OR UNFINISHED LOWER RECEIVERS, VOLUNTARY RELINQUISHMENT OF FIREARMS AND AMMUNITION AND… · fail · https://openstates.org/ct/bills/2026/HB5043/
- 2026-05-06 · voted yea · Senate Roll Call Vote · HB 5155 AN ACT CONCERNING PESTICIDE REPORTING MODERNIZATION. · pass · https://openstates.org/ct/bills/2026/HB5155/
- 2026-05-06 · voted nay · Senate Roll Call Vote · HB 5001 AN ACT CONCERNING ABSENTEE VOTING FOR ALL AND VARIOUS OTHER REFORMS RELATED TO THE ADMINISTRATION OF ELECTIONS. · fail · https://openstates.org/ct/bills/2026/HB5001/
- 2026-05-06 · voted yea · Senate Roll Call Vote · HB 5331 AN ACT CONCERNING THE AIR PERMITS OF CERTAIN CREMATORIES. · pass · https://openstates.org/ct/bills/2026/HB5331/
- 2026-05-06 · voted yea · Senate Roll Call Vote · HB 5557 AN ACT CONCERNING A PLAN TO REVISE THE DEFINITION OF INTELLECTUAL DISABILITY AND THE ESTABLISHMENT OF WORKING GROUPS ON AMERICAN SIGN LANGUAGE… · pass · https://openstates.org/ct/bills/2026/HB5557/
- 2026-05-06 · voted yea · Senate Roll Call Vote · HB 5573 AN ACT CONVEYING A PARCEL OF STATE LAND TO THE CITY OF TORRINGTON. · pass · https://openstates.org/ct/bills/2026/HB5573/
- 2026-05-06 · voted yea · Senate Roll Call Vote · SB 477 AN ACT CONCERNING THE FAILURE TO FILE FOR CERTAIN GRAND LIST EXEMPTIONS, A MUNICIPAL OPTION TO ABATE DELINQUENT PROPERTY TAXES ON CERTAIN PARCELS OF… · pass · https://openstates.org/ct/bills/2026/SB477/
- 2026-05-06 · voted yea · Senate Roll Call Vote · HB 5143 AN ACT REQUIRING TRAINING FOR HOMEMAKER-COMPANION AGENCY EMPLOYEES. · pass · https://openstates.org/ct/bills/2026/HB5143/

## Legislation (CT 2025–26 session)

Sponsored 43 bills: 43 reached committee, 18 passed one chamber, 15 passed both, 15 became law. Cosponsored 0. 41.9% of sponsored bills got out of committee (Connecticut Senate 39.9%; rank 14 of 35).

Recent sponsored bills:

- SB 1: AN ACT MAKING ADJUSTMENTS TO THE STATE BUDGET FOR THE BIENNIUM ENDING JUNE 30, 2027, MAKING DEFICIENCY APPROPRIATIONS FOR THE FISCAL YEAR ENDING JUNE 30,… (became law, 2026-05-26) https://openstates.org/ct/bills/2026/SB1/
- SB 2: AN ACT SUPPORTING LOCAL COMMERCE. (in committee, 2026-04-20) https://openstates.org/ct/bills/2026/SB2/
- SB 293: AN ACT CONCERNING THE STATUTE OF LIMITATION FOR INJURY CAUSED BY FRAUD IN THE PROVISION OF FERTILITY CARE AND TREATMENT. (passed one chamber, 2026-04-30) https://openstates.org/ct/bills/2026/SB293/
- SB 397: AN ACT CONCERNING DEMOCRACY AND GOVERNMENT ACCOUNTABILITY AND THE USE AND RETENTION OF DATA DERIVED FROM AUTOMATED LICENSE PLATE READER SYSTEMS. (became law, 2026-05-06) https://openstates.org/ct/bills/2026/SB397/
- HB 5531: AN ACT CONCERNING FAITHFUL PRESIDENTIAL ELECTORS. (passed one chamber, 2026-04-29) https://openstates.org/ct/bills/2026/HB5531/
- HB 5434: AN ACT CONCERNING STATE-WIDE RECOGNITION OF MINOR PARTIES FOR PURPOSES OF NOMINATING PETITIONS. (in committee, 2026-04-08) https://openstates.org/ct/bills/2026/HB5434/
- SJ 37: RESOLUTION PROPOSING AN AMENDMENT TO THE STATE CONSTITUTION CONCERNING ENVIRONMENTAL RIGHTS. (in committee, 2026-04-08) https://openstates.org/ct/bills/2026/SJ37/
- HB 5328: AN ACT ESTABLISHING A WORKING GROUP TO ADDRESS ANTI-MUSLIM AND ANTI-ARAB RACISM IN SCHOOLS. (in committee, 2026-04-08) https://openstates.org/ct/bills/2026/HB5328/
- SB 87: AN ACT ESTABLISHING A NONPROFIT PROVIDER ADVISORY BOARD AND PROHIBITING AUTO INSURANCE PENALTIES ON VOLUNTEER DRIVERS PROVIDING TRANSPORTATION TO NONPROFIT… (became law, 2026-06-02) https://openstates.org/ct/bills/2026/SB87/
- HB 5562: AN ACT CONCERNING VARIOUS REVISIONS TO HUMAN SERVICES STATUTES. (became law, 2026-06-02) https://openstates.org/ct/bills/2026/HB5562/

## Campaign money (2026 cycle)

Itemized receipts $21.5K (State Senate Democrats median $55.5K). 93% of itemized individual money came from in state. Aggregates only; no individual donors.

## Recent statements

Newest first. Posts on X are listed by date and link only.

- 2026-10-25 · Post on X · https://x.com/mattlesser/status/2114449428623011952
- 2026-10-20 · Post on X · labels: policy discussion · https://x.com/mattlesser/status/2112636254328324353
- 2026-10-20 · Post on X · labels: policy discussion, credit claiming · https://x.com/mattlesser/status/2112689441873809515
- 2026-10-20 · Post on X · labels: policy discussion, bipartisanship, credit claiming · https://x.com/mattlesser/status/2112690030640595232
- 2026-10-15 · Post on X · https://x.com/mattlesser/status/2110844389341712567
- 2026-10-15 · Post on X · https://x.com/mattlesser/status/2110849101801967970
- 2026-10-01 · Post on X · https://x.com/mattlesser/status/2105684213735342317
- 2026-10-01 · Post on X · https://x.com/mattlesser/status/2105750998115573944
- 2026-10-01 · Post on X · labels: personal attacks, policy discussion · https://x.com/mattlesser/status/2105776648427884688
- 2026-10-01 · Post on X · labels: policy criticism, policy discussion · https://x.com/mattlesser/status/2105788029831090647

## Links

- Official site: https://www.senatedems.ct.gov/senator/matt-lesser
- Campaign site: https://www.mattlesser.com
- X: https://x.com/mattlesser
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mattlesserct/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/lesser.matthew
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/matthew.lesser
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/matthew-lesser-bb941414/

Full profile, with every chart and the methods: https://americaspoliticalpulse.com/p/f55ef0f9-f0ed-48ba-80b9-23ac643626cc