Robert Sampson (politician)

Robert Charles Sampson is an American politician from Connecticut. A member of the Republican Party, he was first elected in 2010 to the Connecticut House of Representatives from the 80th House district, serving four terms (2011–2018). Since 2019, he has been a member of the Connecticut State Senate, elected from the 16th Senate District.

Early life
Sampson was raised in Meriden; since 2003, he has lived in Wolcott. He graduated from Maloney High School in 1987.

Elections
Sampson, a real estate agent and insurance agent, was elected to the Connecticut House of Representatives, representing the 80th State House District, in 2010, and served four terms in the House. The 80th district at the time covered all of Wolcott and part of Southington. Sampson defeated incumbent Democrat John "Corky" Mazurek in 2010, and won rematches against Mazurek in 2012 and 2014. Sampson was elected in 2016 unopposed.

Sampson was elected in 2018 to the State Senate from the 16th State Senate district, to an open seat vacated by Joe Markley. He defeated Democratic nominee Vickie Nardello, a former state representative. In November 2022, Sampson was reelected to the state Senate, defeating Democratic challenger Chris Robertson. The 16th state Senate district encompasses all of the towns of Wolcott, Southington, and Prospect, and parts of Cheshire and Waterbury.

Tenure
He currently serves as the Ranking Republican on the Government Administration & Elections, Housing, and the Labor & Public Employees Committees. He is also a member of the Judiciary Committee.

Sampson supported the Supreme Court's decisions in Harris v. Quinn, which limited the power of labor unions to collect agency fees. He opposed the New Britain to Hartford Busway.

Sampson is a staunch opponent of gun control. In 2013, after the Sandy Hook Elementary School massacre, he voted against a bipartisan gun control bill; in 2015, he introduced a measure to repeal the law. In 2019, Sampson and fellow Republican John Kissel were the only senators to vote against "Ethan's Law," a safe storage law requiring gun owners to safely store firearms (whether loaded or unloaded) while not in use; the bill passed 31–2. Sampson has received awards from the Connecticut Citizens Defense League and NRA Institute for Legislative Action.

In 2013, Sampson was one of two state lawmakers who voted against a measure requiring officials to consider the necessity of mitigation for sea level rise when making water treatment facility funding decisions. Sampson said he acknowledged climate change, but was opposed to a state mandate for local officials.

In 2017, Sampson was one of three Republicans in the Connecticut legislation who introduced legislation to reinstate capital punishment in Connecticut.

In 2011, Sampson voted against the confirmation of Connecticut Appellate Court Judge Lubbie Harper Jr. to the Connecticut Supreme Court. In March 2019, after Harper retired from the state supreme court, Sampson was the lone dissenter against Harper's confirmation to serve as a part-time trial referee; Sampson objected to Harper's vote in Kerrigan v. Commissioner of Public Health (2008), in which Harper joined the majority in holding that the state constitution gave same-sex couples the right to marry. Harper was confirmed 33–1. In 2019, Sampson was one of eight state representatives to vote against legislation banning conversion therapy; Sampson viewed the ban as a violation of parental rights.

In 2019, Sampson was one of three state Senators who voted against a tobacco control bill raising the legal age to purchase cigarettes and other tobacco products from age 18 to age 21.

In 2019, Sampson was one of two state Senators who voted against a bill banning the practice of pet leasing in Connecticut.

In 2023, Sampson was the lone "no" vote in the state Senate opposing a resolution exonerating the victims of the 17th-century Connecticut Witch Trials, in which eleven residents of Connecticut Colony were executed for witchcraft. The resolution, which passed 33–1, acknowledged the miscarriage of justice and apologized on behalf of the state. Sampson said he opposed the bill because the state had no "right to dictate what was right or wrong about periods in the past that we have no knowledge of".

In 2023, Sampson, along with other Connecticut Republicans, opposed legislation to expand the state's paid sick leave law to provide up to one week of paid sick leave annually for almost all Connecticut workers.