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Meet Chris Shea
Chris Shea is a Watertown native, retired Navy SEAL, firefighter, former small business owner, nonprofit founder, husband, father, and the Republican nominee for Congress in Connecticut’s 5th District.
Chris began his Navy career in 1991 as a hospital corpsman before completing the demanding Basic Underwater Demolition/SEAL (BUD/S) and Special Forces Medic training. Over a career spanning more than three decades, he served with SEAL Team 8, SEAL Team 18, Naval Special Warfare Group Two, Naval Special Warfare Development Group, Special Operations Command North, the U.S. Embassy in Mexico City, and at the Pentagon.
His service took him around the world. In 1997, Chris was part of a special operations team in the former Yugoslavia that gathered intelligence and helped apprehend individuals accused of war crimes so they could be brought to The Hague to stand trial. He later deployed to Afghanistan, where he served on joint task forces focused on locating and prosecuting high-value al-Qaeda and Taliban targets.
From 2014 to 2016, Chris served all around Mexico, to include the U.S. Embassy in Mexico City, leading efforts to train Mexican special operations forces combating transnational criminal organizations. He later served at the Pentagon, working to ensure America’s Naval Special Warfare forces had the funding and equipment they needed to carry out their missions.
Chris earned his Bachelor of Science from Charter Oak State College and was commissioned as a Navy Warrant Officer in 2012. He retired from the Navy in January 2024 after more than 30 years of service.
But Chris’s record of service isn’t limited to the military.
He has been a firefighter since 2009 and currently serves as a lieutenant with the North Haven Fire Department. He is also the founder and president of Hero to Hero, Inc., a nonprofit that leverages the DOW Skillbridge program to help special operations veterans and other highly qualified service members transition into careers as first responders.
Chris also understands what it means to run a small business, meet payroll, and create jobs. He owned and operated a handyman business that employed six people, giving him firsthand experience with the challenges facing small business owners and working families.
Most importantly, Chris is a dedicated husband to Anita and father to Sophia. He and his wife, Anita, raised Sophia in Watertown, the community where Chris himself grew up. Today, Chris and Anita reside in Cheshire with their dog Lucy.
On August 11, 2026, Republican voters overwhelmingly chose Chris to be their nominee for Congress in Connecticut’s 5th Congressional District, giving him 81% of the vote in the Republican primary.
From Watertown to war zones, from the firehouse to the Pentagon, and from running a small business to helping veterans build new careers, Chris Shea has spent his life serving others. Now, as the Republican nominee for Congress, he’s ready to put that experience to work for the people of Connecticut’s 5th District.
