Linda McMahon, the former CEO of World Wrestling Entertainment who has never held public office before, has seized the Republican convention's U.S. Senate endorsement from Rob Simmons, the party establishment's one-time favorite.
But Simmons more than met the threshold for a primary at Friday's convention and said he has no intention of dropping his bid.
"I believe that the best thing I can do to help the Republican party to victory in November is to give them another choice,'' he said during a brief address to reporters after McMahon was pronounced the winner. "And that's why intend to stay in this race."
Friday's results marked a stunning turn of events for Simmons, who entered the race in the winter of 2009 as the favorite against politically ailing U.S. Sen. Christopher Dodd. Throughout most of last year, Simmons, a former congressman and state representative from Stonington with enduring ties to the state's GOP establishment, was the clear front-runner.
But McMahon's immense wealth -- and her willingness to spend it on the campaign -- won her support. Since entering the race in September, she has crisscrossed the state, visiting town committees and cultivating the goodwill of delegates. Those efforts were supplemented by a television ad campaign, a relentless stream of mailers to voters and a large and well-paid campaign staff. She has spent $16 million so far, and has said she will spend up to $34 million more.
McMahon was also helped by the fact that she's a newcomer to politics in a year when outsiders are winning races from Kentucky to Massachusetts. In fact, she acknowledged early in the campaign that she did not even vote in the 2006 general election and the 2008 Republican primary.