Middletown will remain under Democratic leadership after Mayor Gene Nocera won his bid to keep his seat in Tuesday’s election.
According to unofficial data from the registrar’s office, Nocera, who is the current Interim Mayor and former Common Council President, received more than 61% of the vote in the municipal general election held on Tuesday, Nov. 4, 2025, defeating Republican challenger and former mayor Sebastian Giuliano.
Down the ballot, Democrats also dominated across races for Board of Education, Planning and Zoning, and other positions. Each Democratic candidate received over 5,000 votes.
Two referendums were also on the ballot: one appropriating $9.5 million for water and sewer improvements, and the other $33 million for infrastructure projects. The majority Democratic Common Council called them critical, and both were approved by voters.
“It is really an honor and privilege to stand here,” Nocera told a group of family members and close supporters at a watch party hosted at Middletown restaurant La Boca Mexican Restaurant & Cantina on Tuesday night. “I promise to work with all the voters to bring people together. Working together with the community is my priority.”
Nocera discussed the animosity between some Democratic and Republican voters over the election, addressing his Republican constituents.
“We stand with you,” Nocera said. “We are ready to work with you.”
Nocera had held the position of interim mayor since June 2025, following the sudden resignation of Ben Florsheim ’14.
Both the Connecticut Democratic Party and the Middletown Young Democrats congratulated Nocera on winning his first full term, framing the victory as part of a historic blue wave sweeping Connecticut and the country. Democrats notched major electoral wins nationwide on Tuesday, outperforming predicted margins against Republican candidates in gubernatorial races in New Jersey and Virginia and down-ballot races in Pennsylvania, Virginia, New Jersey, and Georgia. Political analyst and statistician Nate Silver called the Democrats’ dominating performance “spin-proof.”
Giuliano, the Republican candidate and a childhood friend of Nocera’s, received a distant 38% of the vote. He noted that Democrats have held Middletown’s top seat for the last 14 years.
“Not the result we wanted, but I wish Gene all the best,” Giuliano said.
Nocera has said that he will prioritize improving the Water & Sewer Department and continue to develop riverfront properties. He has also discussed the impact of federal funding cuts on local education programs and proposed clarifying and reinforcing Connecticut’s Trust Act, which outlines how Connecticut Law Enforcement works with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), after a high-visibility ICE arrest outside the city courthouse last year.
Nocera has also involved himself with University affairs, supporting measures for increasing the Middletown budget through alternate revenue streams, including taxing the University’s endowments, and joining students advocating against recent budget cuts to student organizations by the Jewett Center for Community Partnerships (JCCP) at a rally during Homecoming and Family Weekend on Saturday, Oct. 25.
“I absolutely support the University expanding the funding for [the JCCP],” Nocera said at the demonstration.
On the campaign trail, Giuliano said that he would have removed the newly-implemented speed cameras on high-traffic roads, reduced city spending, and prioritized updating and developing Middletown infrastructure.
President Michael Roth ’78 expressed his support for the water and sewer and infrastructure referendums on Tuesday. Before the votes were tabulated, he said that he looked forward to working with the winner of the election, whether it was Nocera or Giuliano.
“I do think that when the city turns to the voters for infrastructure approvals, it’s usually for a really good cause,” Roth said. “It’s my experience as a citizen, not as president of Wesleyan, that infrastructure improvements have been good for Middletown.”
Roth cited his past relationships with both Democratic and Republican mayors, including Giuliano himself.
“I [have] had good relationships with each mayor of the City,” he said. “When Seb [Giuliano] was mayor, we met actually even more frequently than with Ben [Florsheim]. Whoever is elected by the citizens of Middletown, we will work closely with…. I hope for the benefit of the City and for the University.”
Nocera will serve as mayor for the remaining two years of Florsheim’s term, until the end of 2027.
Aarushi Bahadur can be reached at abahadur@wesleyan.edu.
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