Greenwich businessman Foley defeats 2 GOP challengers in primary for Conn. governor

Foley wins Republican primary for Conn. governor

HARTFORD, Conn. — Greenwich businessman Tom Foley has won the Republican nomination for Connecticut governor and will face former Stamford Mayor Dan Malloy in November.

Foley bested two challengers in Tuesday’s primary, defeating Lt. Gov. Michael Fedele (feh-DEHL’-ee) and Hartford-area business advocate Oz Griebel (GREEB’-il) in a race that grew increasingly bitter in recent weeks.

Foley, the party’s endorsed candidate, fended off a late surge in the polls by Fedele, who has run TV ads accusing Foley of bankrupting Bibb Manufacturing Co., a textile company in Georgia that closed in 1998. Foley called the ads “absolutely false” and criticized Fedele for overseeing the state amid a period of job losses and budget deficits.

Foley also tried to stop Fedele from receiving $2.5 million in public campaign financing.

THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. Check back soon for further information. AP’s earlier story is below.

HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) — Former Stamford Mayor Dan Malloy has defeated businessman Ned Lamont in the Democratic primary for Connecticut governor, overcoming a better-known and better-funded opponent in the final weeks of the campaign.

Malloy on Tuesday narrowly bested Lamont after a campaign that turned negative, with the candidates trading accusations about each other’s records.

For Malloy, the primary victory was a redemption of sorts for his loss in the 2006 Democratic gubernatorial primary against New Haven Mayor John DeStefano. This time, Malloy said it was easier to differentiate himself from Lamont, a Greenwich businessman best known for challenging Sen. Joe Lieberman in 2006.

Malloy will face the winner of a three-way Republican primary.

Lamont spent more than $8.6 million in the losing effort.