Creative Commons License

Mary G. Fritz
Mary G. Fritz

State Rep. Mary G. Fritz, D-Wallingford, an independent-minded social conservative who was one of the longest-serving legislators in the history of the Connecticut General Assembly, died early Saturday after a yearlong battle with cancer.

Fritz was a one-term legislator swept away by the Ronald Reagan landslide of 1984 that gave Republicans one of their brief two-year periods in the majority, but she made a comeback in 1986 and stayed for another 30 years, bucking her leadership when the mood struck on fiscal issues.

She was one of just 14 House Democrats who voted against a Democratic budget and tax increase in June 2009, though she voted for the final version passed that September. She also voted against Gov. Dannel P. Malloy’s first-year budget and tax increase in 2011.

ā€œShe was a true public servant who put the priorities of her constituents first and represented her district with distinction, yet she never questioned whether the tough issues were worth tackling,ā€ Malloy said.

He alluded to her independence, saying she would be missed ā€œby everyone she fought with and for, and everyone she took the time to advise in her life.ā€

The governor ordered the Connecticut flag to remain at half-staff until her burial. State and U.S. flags had been lowered in honor of the attack in Dallas.

Fritz, who had announced she was not seeking re-election, missed the final months of the 2016 session. She was last seen in the House in a video tribute to retiring legislators.

Mark is the Capitol Bureau Chief and a co-founder of CT Mirror. He is a frequent contributor to WNPR, a former state politics writer for The Hartford Courant and Journal Inquirer, and contributor for The New York Times.

Leave a comment