Tammy Exum, who has represented the 19th District, which includes portions of West Hartford and Avon, will not be running for re-election in 2026.

By Ronni Newton

West Hartford resident Tammy Exum has represented the 19th District in the State House for the past seven years, and while she does not plan to retire from public service, she will not be running for re-election this fall but will instead be using her powerful voice in other ways.

“I’ve done a lot of soul searching,” Exum told We-Ha.com in an interview this week. “I’m not the same. My family is not the same.”

Exum’s life changed dramatically in October 2023 when her husband, Earl, died suddenly at age 55.

An autopsy revealed that Earl’s death was the result of a “widowmaker” heart attack – the deadliest type of heart attack that involves blockage of the Left Anterior Descending Artery (LAD) – which is generally fatal unless immediate medical intervention is available. While it was their wedding anniversary weekend, the Exums were uncharacteristically apart for a few days while she was spending time helping care for her father in North Carolina and he had brought the youngest of their three sons to see a performance by their middle son in Baltimore.

She considered not running again in 2024, but ultimately determined her work in the legislature was not yet done and there were two important missions that guided her decision at the time – and will be the focus of her work going forward. “I have a desire to serve in other ways, to heal, to help my sons heal,” Exum said.

“I was really entrenched in the children’s behavioral health world,” Exum said. HB5001, “An Act Concerning Children’s Mental Health,” which she co-authored in 2022, was still in the early stages of creating impact, and she wanted to be able to continue to advocate for funding and support of the legislation which had the goal of improving “the availability and provision of mental health, behavioral health and substance use disorder treatment services to children.”

In addition, “I wanted to tell people about coronary calcium scans,” she said. “I want people to know what I didn’t know,” Exum said of the simple and inexpensive test that could have revealed Earl’s blockage.

“All he needed was a stent,” she said. “A stent would have saved his life.” While Earl was very fit, he had been experiencing several symptoms often associated with heart conditions, including indigestion and shoulder pain. He had an EKG that was normal and did not reveal any problems – at that moment in time, Exum said.

She encouraged him to undergo further testing, and he had scheduled an appointment on a Monday – the day after his heart attack. “It’s been this unimaginable thing,” she said.

Exum’s advocacy has resulted in the coronary calcium scan being covered for state employees and through many other insurance plans if there are risk criteria present. The simple test costs just $125-$150, takes about five minutes, and can be conducted while the patient is clothed – and provides critical information about the heart’s condition.

Exum said she will be partnering with Dr. Edward Schuster, head cardiologist at Stamford Hospital, and another doctor from Yale, on the mission to raise visibility regarding the importance of coronary calcium scans.

She plans to be involved with the Earl Exum Community Resource Center at Asylum Hill Congregational Church, which was established through a $3.8 million state grant approved earlier this year by the State Bond Commission as part of its sixth round of Community Investment Fund grants. The Center will be a hub and a central space where “food assistance, youth programming, educational support, and vital resources for low-income individuals and families” will be available.

In the future, Exum said, she would like to grow the fund established after Earl’s death – the Earl E. Exum Memorial Fund – through the Hartford Foundation for Public Giving (now called the Greater Hartford Gives Foundation) into a foundation of its own to support a variety of projects.

Exum, who moved to town in 1999, initially thought she would leave Connecticut after Earl’s death and return to her native North Carolina, but now plans to stay in West Hartford.

“This experience, the outpouring of this community, the way this community showed up for me and my family has reminded me of how special it is,” Exum said. “I’m forever privileged by it,” she said.

In addition to the resource center at Asylum Hill, Earl’s legacy in the Greater Hartford area is extensive, she said. In 2024 he was the recipient of the West Hartford Chamber of Commerce’s prestigious Noah Webster Award, posthumously. On Monday, at West Hartford’s annual Martin Luther King Jr. Day celebration, Drs. Booker and Elena DeVaughn will receive the second Earl Exum Servant Leader Award.

Exum appreciates the opportunity she has had to serve in the legislature. “This job has been so rewarding,” she said, and such a learning experience.

She first took office in April 2019, in a special election to replace Derek Slap, who took over the 5th District State Senate seat. “It was in the thick of things,” she said, with the session well underway. She barely had time to locate the restroom in the Capitol building.

“Then we went back in February 2020, and then in March we had COVID.”

Exum is proud of the work she has done in the legislature – bills supporting people with disabilities, expanding organ donation, and especially “An Act Concerning Children’s Mental Health,” which passed the House and Senate unanimously and was signed into law by the governor with the backing of $300 million in funding.

While on Tuesday it appeared as if the federal government had terminated funding for some of the related programs, by Wednesday night that action had been reversed.

She’s a Deputy Majority Leader, had the chance to serve on the redistricting committee, and is vice-chair of the Appropriations Committee. She has had a role in impacting people’s lives in many ways, including supporting an increase in the minimum wage.

It’s been a privilege to represent the community at events and functions, Exum said. “This town is engaged. It’s been one of the greatest joys of my life. … I’m amazed to be trusted to be their voice.”

It’s time for someone else to represent the 19th District, for someone younger to bring fresh new energy, she said. She’s waiting for her own announcement to be made public before disclosing any further details, but with a smile she said she has personally spoken with someone interested in taking on the role, a “vibrant, exciting, new candidate.”

“I’ve been a part of a jillion communities because of my kids, because of the things I’ve done,” she said, and those are experiences that will serve her in the future.

“This is my community,” Exum said, and she looks forward to focusing her own life in providing meaningful service, but in a new way.

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