Republicans are trying to break Democrats’ winning streak in Connecticut in the U.S. House of Representatives elections

It’s been 18 years since Connecticut voted to send a Republican to Washington. Republican George Logan will try to end the party’s long losing streak on Tuesday in a rematch with U.S. Rep. Jahana Hayes, the three-term Democrat defeated him two years ago with a margin of less than 1% of the vote.

The race between Hayes and Logan is among the state’s most closely watched contests on an Election Day when voters also choose state lawmakers, a U.S. senator and the next U.S. president.

In their first match of 2022, Hayes defeated Logan by just 2,004 votes. This time, Hayes is hoping for additional impetus if he takes part in the vote alongside Vice President Kamala Harris.

“There’s been a lot more enthusiasm since Harris came in first,” said Hayes, the first Black woman to represent Connecticut in Congress. “At all of our headquarters throughout the district, we had people coming in to volunteer, women calling the bank or knocking on the door.”

Logan, a mechanical engineer and former state senator who now works as a community relations director for a public water utility, has portrayed himself as an independent-minded Republican who would not be beholden to the national party.

He also focused heavily on his personal background. If elected, the Afro-Latino son of Guatemalan immigrants would become the first Hispanic member of Congress from Connecticut.

“I believe Washington is broken and needs fixing. I want to be part of the solution,” he told reporters after a debate with Hayes. “I want to work across party lines.”

The race is in a district in the northwest part of the state where President Joe Biden defeated former President Donald Trump by 11 points in 2020.

Logan said he would vote for Trump, but he has treaded cautiously on the campaign trail.

He avoided talking about the Republican presidential candidate or aligning himself with the politics of Trump and the MAGA movement. Instead, he repeatedly spoke about focusing on the needs of the district rather than the contentious presidential election, and vowed to be an “independent voice” who would work with whoever wins the White House.

The race was mostly one Restart of 2022with Logan even reusing some of his advertisements. He criticized Hayes for “voting with the failed Biden-Harris administration 99% of the time” and focused heavily on economic issues. Hayes accused him of posing a risk to abortion rights and siding with “extremist” Republicans in Washington. Logan has said he supports abortion rights.

Connecticut has been challenging terrain for Republicans in recent decades. The last Republican to win a seat in the state’s House of Representatives was former U.S. Rep. Chris Shays, who was voted out in 2008.

Incumbent Democrats in the state’s other four congressional districts are also running for re-election, including U.S. Rep. Joe Courtney in the eastern part of the state. He is seeking a 10th term in a rematch against former Republican Rep. Mike France, whom he defeated by 18 points two years ago.

Sen. Chris Murphy won a third term in a rematch against Republican Matt Corey, a small business owner who has described himself as “the fighter Donald Trump needs on his side.” The last Republican senator from Connecticut was Lowell Weicker, who lost in 1988 and later left the party.

All state parliamentarians are also up for re-election this year. Democrats currently have a two-thirds majority in the state Senate, but are close behind in the House. If they secure a net gain of three seats in the House without losing a seat in the Senate, Democrats will have the supermajority in the General Assembly needed to override a governor’s veto.