Sometimes life after Congress means retiring to a life of consulting, but sometimes it means you end up back in local government.  

The town hall in Stonington, Conn., is in no way as ornate as the U.S. Capitol, but the newly elected first selectman is a former member of the House.  

Former Rep. Rob Simmons, R-Conn., has served  on the board of selectmen since Sept. 2014, when he was appointed to fill a Republican seat.  

Simmons served three terms in the House before losing a re-election bid to Democratic Rep. Joe Courtney in Connecticut’s sprawling Second District in the eastern part of the state back in 2006. The district was for years one of the most closely contested in the country.  

After leaving Congress, Simmons became the state business advocate under Republican Gov. M. Jodi Rell, before seeking the Republican nomination for an open U.S. Senate seat, losing in the primary to wrestling executive Linda McMahon. She lost the Senate election that year to Democrat Richard Blumenthal.  

That was all before Simmons ended up back in local government.  

The New London Day reported that defeated incumbent first selectman George Crouse conceded Tuesday evening even before the votes were counted. Crouse was a longtime teacher in the town’s public schools. He has also been a prominent tennis coach.

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