Tuesday night was a time for celebrating, but come morning, Laufton Ascencao was right back at work as the newly appointed state representative for District 68.

Just hours earlier, the 25-year-old Democrat defeated Libertarian candidate William Hunt, Jr. in the midterm election race, securing 64 percent of the votes between Bristol and Warren. Though he may have won by a relatively wide margin, the road leading up to this point was hardly a breeze; Mr. Ascencao spent countless hours over the last several months going around the community, knocking on doors and discussing the issues he was passionate about with local residents.

“I went door-to-door to virtually everyone in town and talked about what I believed in — and people agreed,” he said.

Whether it was supporting renewable energy initiatives or pushing for a raise in the minimum wage, Mr. Ascencao, from the start, was adamant about his fearlessness in standing up to politicians and advocating for the causes he and his constituents care about.

“I’m ready to fight as hard as I can at the Statehouse,” he said.

Coming from a modest background, Mr. Ascencao has stated time and again that he is no stranger to a hard day’s work; from beginning a full-time job at the age of 12 to, more recently, endlessly campaigning for earned sick days, he’s put his heart and soul into each and every cause.

Though his authenticity had been challenged by both Mr. Hunt and early competitor Andy Tyska at times, Mr. Ascencao believes his shared distaste for the typical political agenda resonated with community members and helped earn him the victory.

“I can’t thank the people of Bristol and Warren enough for fighting for me, for believing in me,” he said.
“I’m going to fight for what we believe in.”