Connecticut Senator Issues Press Release To Brag About His Twitter Followers

Connecticut’s new senator bests his home-state rival, a member of Congress.

Image by Jessica Hill, File / AP

WASHINGTON — A Twitter rivalry between two Connecticut lawmakers reached the next level Tuesday when Sen. Chris Murphy bested Rep. Jim Himes, a fellow Democrat, in his follower count for the first time.

When Murphy passed the threshold, he issued a press release to gloat:

CHESHIRE—Today, U.S. Senator Chris Murphy achieved what many once said was impossible, surpassing U.S. Congressman Jim Himes in total twitter followers. Himes was crowned the second “best tweeter” in Congress by Washingtonian magazine just last year. Murphy released the following statement to mark the occasion:

At long last, Congressman Himes’ long and oppressive rule atop Connecticut’s Twitter delegation has finally ended.

First, I want to thank each and every person or bot who has clicked ‘follow,’ and come along on this journey with me. We’ve proven that, together, we can truly accomplish the impossible: we can best Jim Himes. It’s encouraging to see so many people in Connecticut and across the country are engaged in more than just endless musings about Metro-North trains, obscure literary references, and oysters.

And second, while some may attribute this achievement to my election to the Senate, it’s important to remember that we’re all working with the same Internet here. People are free to follow whoever they want, and increasingly it seems they are choosing me instead of Jim.

On Monday, Himes had appeared to challenge Murphy with a photo that mocked Murphy’s follower count:

A few hours later, Murphy bested Himes, and Himes conceded defeat.

Jim Himes @jahimes Follow

Ok. So @ChrisMurphyCT just passed my follower #. I could mourn, or I could point out he's a friggin' senator now. So w/5 CT districts....

3:22 AM - 15 Jan 13

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