Simsbury Republican town committee member Darren Cunningham remembers a time when the party had to go begging to find enough delegates for its convention.
"There have been a lot of lean years,'' he said. "It wasn't popular to run with an 'R' next to your name."
Not this year, they say. There are an abundance of Republican candidates and "we had almost three people for every one delegate position," Cunningham said.
As the curtain draws on the 2010 Republican convention, Cunningham, 34, and fellow Simsbury delegate Greg Piecuch, 33, said they saw an energy they hadn't seen before.
Piecuch, who is running for state representative from the 16th District, said he felt that energy earlier on Sunday when all the GOP legislative candidates were gathered in a room with party leaders.
Cunningham, who ran unsuccessfully for First Selectman last year against Mary Glassman, said candidates such as Bloomfield's Corey Brinson, Justin Bernier and Jeff Wright of Newington are revitalizating the party.
"We all love Jodi Rell,'' but her departure from the state's political scene "is sort of the end of an era."