Another tight race shaping up in the 5th Congressional District

After one of the tightest races in the country in 2022, the 5th Congressional District is headed for a contentious rematch this November.  

Rep. Jahana Hayes, (D - 5th District), feels like she’s delivered for the district after winning by just 2,004 votes two years ago.  

“I have brought money back to the district for housing, really making permanent the child tax credit,” she said about her accomplishments and her priorities for another term.  

But Logan hopes voters have changed their minds over the last two years.  

“If you believe that we need to change the status quo, that we need a different, my campaign – I believe that I offer an alternative from that,” Logan said.  

Hayes said she wants to help support the middle class by reducing the cost of things like prescription drugs and childcare. A former teacher of the year, she also touted her support for public schools.  

Logan said Democratic policies have hurt the middle class, though. He said Congress should cut spending in response to inflation in reduce regulations so businesses can grow good-paying jobs.  

He also said those changes, in turn, would help more people afford housing.  

“Right now, we have builders who aren’t building as many homes as they were in the past, we have folks who can’t afford to buy homes,” Logan said.  

Hayes, on the other hand, endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris’ plan of incentives for builders to construct more homes and assistance for first-time buyers.  

“Especially in a state like Connecticut, where the price of rent, the price of mortgages – the availability of housing is so slim,” Hayes said.  

The two candidates also disagreed on immigration.  

Hayes backs a bipartisan Senate bill that would boost spending for patrol agents and speed up the asylum application process. She said Congress would need to take more steps beyond that.  

Logan said any immigration solution needs to start with border security. During a debate last week, he voiced his support for a House Republican bill that would build a border wall and require asylum seekers to wait outside the U.S. until their application is approved.  

The two do seem to agree on providing federal protections for access to abortion.  

“I should not be able to weigh in on whether a woman makes that – maybe the most personal decision of her life,” Hayes said, adding she’d codify rights protected on Roe v. Wade.  

When asked if he’d do the same, Logan said “(a)t the federal level, I would support codifying access to abortion as long as it doesn’t undermine Connecticut's law and it's Constitutional.”  

The two candidates disagree on many of the key issues, though, including the ongoing war in the Middle East.  

They do agree in their stance that Israel has the right to protect itself from terrorist attacks, but Logan said the U.S. should remain strong in backing Israel because “Iran is running a proxy war.”  

Hayes, on the other hand, said the U.S. must recognize a humanitarian crisis for Palestinians living in Gaza and push for a ceasefire.  

The two candidates have traded plenty of barbs once again, including who would be the more independent voice in Congress.  

Logan insists that’s him.  

“To me it doesn’t matter from which party, a bad bill or a bad idea is a bad idea,” he said.  

Hayes has, though, noted Logan welcomed Rep. Mike Johnson, (R - House Speaker), for a rally in March and has been reluctant to criticize former President Trump. While saying he would vote for the Republican ticket during a debate last week, Logan avoided using Trump’s name.  

“He can’t try to say the people of the district 'I'll be an independent voice,' and 'I don’t support these people', but then is campaigning with them,” Hayes said.