State Rep. William Tong, a three-term Democrat from Stamford, made it official this morning in interviews with WFSB's Dennis House and his hometown paper, the Stamford Advocate.
A self-described political moderate with a stellar resume (Phillips Academy, Brown University and a law degree from the University of Chicago), Tong acknowledged that running for U.S. Senate is a "heavy lift." But he told the Advocate's Elizabeth Kim that "there's a place in this field for me."
U.S. Rep. Chris Murphy and former Secretary of the State Susan Bysiewicz declared their intention to run for the seat in January. The current occupant, U.S. Sen. Joseph Lieberman, is not seeking reelection.
If elected, Tong would be the first Asian-American to serve as a U.S. Senator from Connecticut.
In an interview last month, one prominent state Democrfat called Tong "the Asian Obama," a reference to his politics, his compelling life story and the fact that he's a state-level official looking to make the jump to the big leagues, just as President Obama had done.