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L E C T I O N 2 0 1 0 I N C O
N N E C T I C U T
Coming up: Debates in the Fall...
October 7, 2010 Ridgefield Playhouse - Save the Date!
The
Ridgefield LWV is sponsoring a debate between those candidates running
for the Connecticut State Senate District 26 (Toni Boucher and John
Hartwell) and the 111th Legislative District (John Frey and Joseph
Heyman). The debate is scheduled for Thursday, October 7, 2010
from 7:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. at the Ridgefield Playhouse, 80 East Ridge
Road, Ridgefield. Jean Rabinow from the LWVCT has graciously
consented to be the moderator for the event.
The
State Senator from the CT State Senate District 26 represents the towns
of Bethel, New Canaan, Redding, Ridgefield, Weston, Westport and
Wilton, and we have been advised that the incumbent, Toni Boucher will
only be participating in two debates this year (one being
Ridgefield’s). Consequently, we would like to invite the Leagues
in those Towns and members of their communities to join us at the
debate on October 7th.
Primary results:
Weston voters pick Malloy, Foley and McMahon
Weston FORUM
Written by Patricia Gay
Tuesday, 10 August 2010 21:25
Voter turnout was light today in Weston for the state Democratic and
Republican primaries, with just 24% of all eligible voters casting
their ballots. Of the town’s 2,186 registered Democrats, 462
voted, as did 460 of the town’s 1,887 registered Republicans.
There were 29 Democratic absentee and overseas ballots cast and 38
Republican absentee and overseas ballots cast, for a total of 989
voters overall in the primaries. Unaffiliated voters and those
registered with other parties were not allowed to vote in the primaries.
Democratic
primary
In Weston, for the governor’s race, Democrats favored former Stamford
Mayor Dan Malloy with 272 votes over Greenwich businessman Ned Lamont,
who got 217 votes. For lieutenant governor, four-term state
comptroller Nancy Wyman got 297 votes while four-term Simsbury first
selectman Mary Messina Glassman received 166 votes. For secretary
of the state, longtime state representative for the 54th District and
house majority leader Denise Merrill received 248 votes, while
financial advisor Gerry Garcia got 199 votes. In the
comptroller’s race, Weston voters favored Kevin Lembo, head of the
state’s Office of Healthcare Advocate, with 338 votes, while five-term
Waterbury Mayor Michael Jarjura received 102 votes.
Republican
primary
For the governor’s race, in Weston former U.S. ambassador to Ireland
Tom Foley got 242 votes, while lieutenant governor Michael Fedele got
165 votes, and Oz Griebel, president and CEO of a regional development
organization, received 80 votes. For lieutenant governor, Danbury
Mayor Mark Boughton got 244 votes, while businesswoman Lisa
Wilson-Foley got 215 votes. In the race for U.S. senator, Linda
McMahon, former CEO of World Wrestling Entertainment, got 254 votes,
Westonite Peter Schiff, head of an international brokerage firm,
received 150 votes, while Rob Simmons, former U.S. representative for
the 2nd District, received 92 votes. For U.S. representative, Dan
Debicella, state senator from Shelton, got 333 votes, Norwalk
businessman Rob Merkle got 83 votes, and Bridgeport businessman Rick
Torres got 62 votes. For attorney general, attorney Martha Dean
received 292 votes, while attorney Ross Garber got 163 votes.
Moderators at the polls in Weston were W. Glenn Major for the
Republicans and Hal Shupack for the Democrats.
PLAN AHEAD
TO BE A POST-ELECTION AUDIT OBSERVER
Party Primaries (Tuesday August 10, 6am to
8pm); over-all election information here.
WESTON
INTERMEDIATE SCHOOL NEW LOCATION
FOR PRIMARIES...
Two electronic votings machines:
- BALLOT:
one with Democrat's primary contests ,
- BALLOT:
the other with Republican's primary contests on ballot


NEW LOCATION FOR AUG. 10 VOTING - INTERMEDIATE SCHOOL GYM
Formal portrait at left,
"WIS" and its new facilities are part of the overall school system
- right, WHS volleyball team practice.
Weston Intermediate
School (W.I.S.) site of Party Primaries August 10,
2010 from 6am to 8pm
Aug. 10 primary: Weston's polling
place is moved
FORUM
Written by Kimberly Donnelly
Wednesday, 21 July 2010 12:02
Weston’s regular polling place will change for the Aug. 10 primary
elections because of construction and asbestos abatement at Weston
Middle School.
Voting will take place in the gymnasium at the town’s newest school,
Weston Intermediate School.
Town officials learned from school officials last week that the roof
replacement project at the middle school — where elections normally
take place — might make it necessary to move the polls from the
gymnasium to the cafeteria.
But, Laura Smits, the Democratic registrar of voters, said when she and
other officials did a walk-through of the building on Friday, July 16,
they then learned that in addition to the roof replacement
construction, asbestos abatement is also taking place at the middle
school.
First Selectman Gayle Weinstein said that by law, no one under the age
of 18 is allowed on a site when asbestos abatement is taking place.
Although most voters are over 18 (17-year-olds who will be 18 by the
general election Nov. 2 may also vote in their party’s primary), Ms.
Weinstein said she did not want to disenfranchise any parents who might
bring young children to the polls.
“We decided it’s not worth taking any chance with asbestos,” the first
selectman added. She also did not want to ask the schools to hold off
on the abatement, as that might cause costly delays to the construction
project.
Dan Clarke, director of facilities for the school district, said the
intermediate school could be used instead.
Although she said she wishes the town had been notified earlier, “Dan
Clarke has been very gracious and willing to do whatever it takes to
make this work,” Ms. Weinstein said.
Because a legal notice stating the polls would be at the middle school
has already been published, and because it is less than 30 days before
the election, the registrars asked for and received an emergency waiver
from the secretary of the state in order to move the location of the
polling place.
Signs will be posted along School Road the day of the primaries, and
security officers will be posted at the middle school, directing voters
who might be unaware of the change to the intermediate school.
“We want to make sure people know where the polls are,” Ms. Weinstein
said. “We want it to be as easy and to cause the least amount of
confusion as possible.”
Voting
Parking is available in the two lots in front of the intermediate
school, as well as in a rear lot near the tennis courts and playground.
Polls will be open at the intermediate school gym for the primary
elections Tuesday, Aug. 10, between the hours of 6 a.m. and 8 p.m. Only
registered Republicans and registered Democrats may vote in their
respective party primaries; those registered as unaffiliated may not
vote in a primary.
For the first time, 17-year-olds who will turn 18 by the Nov. 2 general
election may vote in their party’s primary.
Voters may register to vote any weekday between 9 and 4:30 at Weston
Town Hall.
Registering
The registrars of voters will hold a special session at Weston Town
Hall next Tuesday, July 27, from noon to 2 for the purpose of
registering electors eligible to vote in the upcoming primary.
Mail-in registration forms are available from the registrars’ office at
town hall, as well as online on the secretary of the state’s Web site,
www.sots.ct.gov, and on the town of Weston Web site, www.weston-ct.com.
Mail-in applications for new voters must be postmarked by Aug. 5, and
received no later than noon Aug. 9.
The last day to register in person for new voters and for unaffiliated
voters to declare a party is noon on Aug. 9 at the registrar’s office
in town hall.
Absentee
Absentee ballots for those who will not be in Weston between 6 a.m. and
8 p.m. on Aug. 10 are available.
Absentee ballots may be obtained in the town clerk’s office. Absentee
ballot applications may be downloaded from the secretary of the state’s
Web site, www.ct.gov/sots/.
For more information, call the Weston registrars of voters at
203-222-2686.


Why not have the League moderate a
"cumulative time" format debate series?
Candidates question if debate format helps voters make the right choice
Mark Pazniokas, CT MIRROR
July 16, 2010
Oz Griebel was frustrated. He saw the latest gubernatorial debate
as another futile exercise, illuminating little about the abilities of
the candidates to lead Connecticut.
"To me, it's how does a person think?" Griebel said. "What are their
experiences? How do they react in difficult situations? How do they
react in emotional situations?"
None of those questions were explored in a debate Wednesday night on
NBC30 - or in most previous encounters, said Griebel, who is trailing
in a three-way race for the GOP gubernatorial nomination.
His two would-be Democratic opponents, Dan Malloy and Ned Lamont,
watched the debate and agreed with his assessment, but drew opposite
conclusions.
Lamont is through with debates for the primary campaign.
Malloy says the answer is a wide-open format.
Griebel says he is with Malloy: The fewer the rules, the better -- and
more debates, not less. Malloy has proposed a series of 17 encounters,
one in every community with a daily newspaper.
"Hey, man, go for it," Griebel said. "I'll be right there."
Griebel will get to debate his Republican rivals, Tom Foley and Michael
Fedele, at least twice more before the primary election on Aug.
10. Not so with Malloy and Lamont.
WNPR radio and WFSB, Channel 3 are making a last effort to convince
Lamont to debate Malloy the week before the primary.
But Lamont, who refused an invitation by WTNH, Channel 8 and The Day of
New London for a televised debate on July 27 before 1,500 spectators,
said he saw nothing Wednesday to change his mind.
"You end up with one-minute sound bites. I don't think it's
particularly revealing," Lamont said.
Griebel said a debate could be revealing if the questioners went beyond
a list of standard, unrelated questions and gimmicks like viewer emails
and video queries posed by voters.
On Wednesday night, NBC30 played a video of a package store owner
opposed Sunday liquor sales as a burden and asking the candidates their
position. In a Democratic debate, the station played a video about
support for tourism.
Griebel said those issues undoubtedly are important to narrow groups,
but do they help anyone pick a candidate for governor in the one of the
toughest fiscal environments ever to face the state?
On Wednesday, he was criticized by Foley and Fedele for being open to
tolls as a way to pay for transportation infrastructure. He said his
opponents were not adequately challenged about how they would meet the
state's obligations in a time of flat revenues and a projected deficit.
"Yeah, tolls are on the table. Shoot me," he said.
His Democratic opponents empathized.
"I think Oz has got it about right," Lamont said. "I saw the
debate, not much of substance. Everybody seems to be fixated on Sunday
liquor sales, and we're going bankrupt."
Malloy said the NBC30 debate was better than others, because the format
allowed the candidates to question each other, if only briefly.
And he noted that candidates share some responsibility for formats,
which the campaigns typically negotiate with the sponsoring television
station.
David Doebler, the president and general manager of NBC30, said the
segment in which the candidates questioned each other was praised in
hundreds of viewer emails Thursday. He agreed it yielded the most
interesting exchanges, and he would consider expanding it allow follow
up questions.
"We would love to open it up," he said.
Doebler said some of the candidates might have disliked the viewer
questions, but the station felt it important to include the perspective
of voters.
Griebel's criticisms went beyond the debate Wednesday. He said what is
missing from modern political debates is a sustained discussion, where
a candidate must think on his feet and not get by with a pre-packaged
talking point.
"There is something missing here where I don't see the public gets a
full explanation of things. You jump from school vouchers to liquor
laws," Griebel said. "I get frustrated."
Griebel said he was amazed that no one from NBC30 asked Foley about
recent disclosures about two arrests after motor-vehicle incidents in
1982 and 1983, including one in which he was charged with assault.
Neither case was pursued.
"Why did I have to ask the question on the arrests?" he asked.
Malloy, a former Stamford mayor who served with Griebel on the state
Transportation Strategy Board, said he agreed with Griebel that voters
need to get a sense of the candidates' leadership qualities. There is
no better way than to see the candidates side by side, testing each
other, he said.
"They know they are selecting the person who's going to have to make
very important decisions about their future and their children's
future," Malloy said. "I think that's one of the reasons that debates
are very important. I think that's one of the reasons Ned doesn't
want to debate."
Lamont said he finds that voters can get a better sense of him and his
vision for the state at town hall meetings he is conducting in person
and on teleconferences. Voters have the opportunity to press for
answers until they are satisfied.
Malloy said Lamont's town hall meetings are a great idea. One way to
make them better: invite him.
"If anyone can get him in a room around a table or at a podium," Malloy
said, "I'll show up."
Two
courts hand down contradictory rulings on public financing
CT MIRROR
By Mark
Pazniokas and Keith M. Phaneuf
July 13, 2010
In a dizzying
one-two punch of state and federal court decisions today,
the public financing of campaigns in Connecticut was upheld, but key
provisions that could affect the race for governor were invalidated.
A federal
appeals court ruled that the state cannot give supplemental
grants triggered by an opponent's spending, while a state judge
separately denied a motion to bar Republican gubernatorial candidate
Michael C. Fedele from receiving $2.18 million in public financing.
Fedele's grant
includes money that the federal court says was
inappropriately given, but there is no legal prohibition on him from
spending the $2.18 million awarded to him last week by the State
Elections Enforcement Commission under the Citizens' Election Program,
part of sweeping campaign finance reforms passed in 2005.
Superior Court
Judge Julia L. Aurigemma today denied a request by
Fedele's GOP rivals, Tom Foley and Oz Griebel, for a temporary
injunction stopping him from spending his public grant. Foley
immediately appealed to the Connecticut Supreme Court.
"We are
disappointed in the judge's decision today, but we look forward
to a trial on the merits of these issues and plan to appeal this
preliminary ruling," said Justin Clark, Foley's campaign manager.
The U.S. Court
of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit issued two decisions
today in response to a ruling nearly a year ago by U.S. District Court
Judge Stefan Underhill, who declared the public financing law
unconstitutional, saying it discriminated against minor parties. It
overturned Underhill on several issues and returned the case to him for
further action.
The appellate
court found no discrimination against minor parties, but
it concluded that a bar on contributions and solicitations by lobbyists
and their spouses violated free-speech rights under the First Amendment.
Most
significantly for candidates seeking public financing, the
appellate court negated an order by Underhill that would have imposed
an injunction on the program until all its constitutional defects were
cured by legislative action.
"Underhill's
decision would have padlocked the program completely,"
said Beth Rotman, director of the Citizens' Election Program.
She praised the
state court and said the state will immediately seek a
stay from the U.S. Supreme Court of the federal decision, citing the
impact on statewide primaries for governor that are less than a month
away.
Gov. M. Jodi
Rell said the legislature should quickly alter the law to
comport with the federal decision, which Attorney General Richard
Blumenthal says leaves most of the public financing program intact
"Today's
decisions uphold significant provisions of the Citizens
Election Program and the state's ban on political contributions by
state contractors, but strike down bans against lobbyist donations and
solicitations of contributions. The decisions also strike the provision
providing additional funding to candidates when an opponent spends
beyond a publicly financed candidate's threshold," Blumenthal said.
The court
decision does not affect the ability of candidates' to seek
and obtain public financing, but it bars them from obtaining
supplemental grants triggered by an opponent's excessive spending, a
long-term complication to the campaigns of the two publicly financed
candidates for governor, Fedele and Democrat Dan Malloy.
"Today's
decision is just one step in a long process, a process that I
am confident will result in Connecticut's public financing law
remaining in place. In the short-term, the decision has no impact on
the primary election I'm engaged in - I'm as confident as ever that
we're going win on August 10th because this campaign represents values
and experience that money can't buy," Malloy said.
The campaign of
Democrat Ned Lamont, who has opted out of the voluntary
public financing program to use his own wealth and privately raised
funds, had no comment on either court decision.
"This was a
frivolous lawsuit," Fedele said of the action initiated by
Foley and joined by Griebel. "It was Tom Foley trying to silence me."
Fedele said he
that tomorrow he will launch a media campaign, including
television advertisements, and that he plans to spend all $2 million in
public funds available to him in less than one month. The gubernatorial
primaries arer Aug. 10.
"We have a plan
and we are ready to go," Fedele said, predicting
Foley's lawsuit and planned appeal would weaken his standing with
voters. "While Tom Foley spends his time with his lawyers, I'll be
spending it with the people of Connecticut."
Foley's
campaign issued a statement expressing its disappointment with
the federal decision. It had no immediate comment on the rejection of
its request for an injunction.
The
supplemental grants were not a factor in legislative races two
years ago, when only one legislative candidate was given an extra grant
of a few hundred dollars.
"Campaign
finance is alive and well," Rell said.
But the court
struck down a ban on contributions by lobbyists, a
provision demanded by Rell over the warnings of lawyers that it might
be unconstitutional. The court found that the state made compelling
case to restrict the free-speech rights of lobbyists.
"I'm
disappointed to say the least," that bans on lobbyist
contributions, and on the ability of lobbyists and contractors to
solicit contributions for candidates from their clients, were struck
down, Rell said. "I still think that whatever we could do to keep
special interests out of campaigns I would support."
House Speaker
Christopher G. Donovan, D-Meriden, and Senate President
Pro Tem Donald E. Williams Jr., D-Brooklyn, were reviewing their
options for a special session consider legislative fixes. Still,
Donovan found the overall decision good news for advocates of public
financing.
"We came out on
top," he said. "We kept the public financing."
The governor
said she believes the legislature should act quickly in
special session to resolve the lobbyist contribution issue, suggesting
a $100 limit. That was the legal advice Rell rejected in 2005, when the
campaign finance reforms were passed.
"I think it
would be very simple for the legislature to put the same
threshold in place that they put for everyone else," she said. "I think
that would be an easy fix."
"I believe
campaign finance reform works," she said. "I support it. I
believe that the Republicans would benefit from campaign finance reform
because I think it helps to level the playing field."
By late
afternoon, advocates of public financing were pressing legislative
leaders to act quickly.
"The enactment
of Connecticut's reform was one of Connecticut's
proudest moments," said Tom Swan, executive director of the Connecticut
Citizen Action Group. "It is time for the legislature to act. This late
in the election cycle it is important for the legislature to clarify
the rules under which people are running in the fall. We call on the
legislature to come into special session to enact a fix."
"Connecticut
voters overwhelmingly support the landmark Citizens'
Election Program," said Cheri Quickmire, executive director of Common
Cause. "The legislature and the Governor should act quickly to amend
the program to comply with the court ruling. Candidates are mid-stream
and the primary is weeks away."
In the race for
governor, the ability of Fedele to collect a further
supplemental grant triggered by the spending of Tom Foley seems in
question. The appellate court struck down that provision.
Malloy already
has collected and, presumably spent, a supplemental
grant of $1.25 million triggered by the spending of his opponent in the
race for the Democratic gubernatorial nomination, Ned Lamont. Fedele
received a basic grant of $1.25 million and a supplemental grant of
$937,500.
Based on
Foley's continued spending, Fedele was expected to seek and receive
another $312,500.
Opponents and
supporters of public financing praised the mixed federal decision.
"Connecticut's
so-called Citizens Election Program is fatally flawed
and should be repealed. The law's perverse incentives, convoluted
logic, and unconstitutional provisions have already had a shameful
impact on this year's elections, regardless of which candidates
ultimately are nominated and elected," said Fergus Cullen of the Yankee
Institute.
But Secretary
of the State Susan Bysieiwcz credited public financing
for a 12-year high in the number of candidates running for General
Assembly. She said public financing has encouraged that trend.
"Candidates for
state office in Connecticut still need clarity on the
rules for raising and spending campaign funds, and I hope we soon get
the clarity we all seek," she said. "We must not forget the big
picture, which is that we need to stay committed to concept of clean
elections in Connecticut."
Special voter session set for Tuesday, July 27
Weston FORUM
Sunday, 11 July 2010 00:00
A primary election will be held on Tuesday, Aug. 10, at
Weston Middle School between the hours of 6 a.m. and 8 p.m. Only
registered Republicans and Democrats will be eligible to vote.
The registrars of voters will hold a special session at
Weston Town Hall on Tuesday, July 27, from noon to 2 for the purpose of
registering electors eligible to vote in the upcoming primary. At that
time, the registrar will hear requests by persons removed, for adding
their names to the registry list.
Questions may be directed to the registrars of voters at
203-222-2686.
Residents of Connecticut who are U.S. citizens and will be 18
years of age or older on Election Day (Nov. 2) may register to vote any
weekday between 9 and 4:30 at Weston Town Hall.
Mail-in registration forms are available from the registrars’
office at town hall, as well as online on the secretary of the state’s
Web site, www.sots.ct.gov, and on the town of Weston Web site,
www.weston-ct.com.
Mail-in applications for new voters must be postmarked by
Aug. 5, and received no later than noon Aug. 9.
The last day to register in person for new voters and for
unaffiliated voters to declare a party is noon on Aug. 9 at the
registrars’ office in town hall.
Absentee ballots may be obtained in the town clerk’s office.
Absentee ballot applications may be downloaded from the secretary of
the state’s Web site.
For more information, call the registrars of voters at
203-222-2686.
NEXT
STOP ALONG THE ROAD TO ELECTION DAY: Primaries for Governor
on both sides expected.
Since the only real news at this point is who won the
Party endorsements for office - those who received 15% of the
Convention votes have the right to file for a Primary - filings
are not due for a while...
KEVIN LEMBO MAY HAVE A COMPROLLER
PRIMARY IN AUGUST, AS MAY SEC'Y OF STATE WINNER DENISE MERRILL, NOT TO
MENTION GOVERNOR WINNER DAN MALLOY. ON THE REPUBLICAN SIDE, SOME
POSSIBLILITIES, TOO - SEC'Y OF STATE WINNER MARTHA DEAN, U.S.
SENATE WINNER LINDA MCMAHON, GOVERNOR WINNER TOM FOLEY...A BUSY
SUMMER!

Gov.
Rell Not Seeking Reelection in 2010; Stunning Announcement Shocks
Capitol; Few Knew In Advance
Hartford Courant
By Christopher Keating
on November 9, 2009 5:24 PM |
Permalink | Comments (0)
In a stunning announcement, an
emotional Gov. M. Jodi Rell told reporters shortly Monday evening that
she is not
seeking reelection...full story here.
NOTE:
This item below is not an endorsement of any candidate for any office
E-Democracy:
A 21st Century Citizen's Right to Know and Participate

LWVCT
Fall
Conference 2007
Keynote speaker was CT Att'y General Richard Blumenthal
3 Democrats
— 2 senators, 1 governor —
to retire
YAHOO
By LIZ SIDOTI,
AP National Political Writer
January 6, 2010
WASHINGTON –
With the 2010 election year barely under way, two senators
and one governor — all Democrats — ditched
plans to run
for re-election
in the latest signs of trouble for President Barack Obama's party.
Taken together,
the decisions by Sens. Chris Dodd of Connecticut and
Byron Dorgan of North Dakota as well as Colorado
Gov. Bill
Ritter
caused another bout of heartburn for Democrats as they struggle to
defend themselves in a sour political
environment for
incumbents,
particularly the party in charge.
As 2009 ended,
Democrats watched a string of their House members
announce retirements and one congressman defect to the GOP.
Now, with Dodd,
Dorgan and Ritter out, Republicans have even more to
crow about, if not better opportunities to pick up
Democratic-held
seats.
Democrats, who
have a 60-40 Senate majority that includes two
independents who vote with them, now will have to defend four
open
seats in the Senate. The others are Delaware and Illinois, where Sens.
Ted Kaufman, who replaced Vice President Joe Biden,
and Roland
Burris,
who replaced Obama, aren't running for full terms.
Among
governors, Democrats are seeking to maintain their 26-24 majority
in a year when those elected will oversee the redrawing of
congressional
and legislative districts for the next decade.
Republicans and
Democrats alike say they now expect competitive races
for the Senate seat in North Dakota, a GOP-tilting state,
and the
governor's seat in Colorado, a pivotal swing state that has trended
toward Democrats in recent years but may be shifting
back toward
Republicans.
But in
Democratic-leaning Connecticut, Dodd's retirement may actually
heighten the likelihood that the seat he's held for five terms
will
remain in Democratic hands. The party can now recruit a more popular
candidate to run, bolstering the prospects of thwarting
a Republican
victory.
Longtime
Connecticut Attorney General Richard Blumenthal told The Associated
Press on Wednesday morning that he will run
for Dodd's seat.
Blumenthal, a Democrat, is seen as one of the state's most popular
politicians. He planned to publicly announce
his candidacy later
Wednesday.
Considered by
many insiders to be the most endangered Senate Democrat,
Dodd planned to announce his retirement Wednesday,
according to
Democratic officials who spoke on the condition of anonymity because
they weren't authorized to publicly pre-empt
the senator's
remarks.
Dodd told Democrats of his plans late Tuesday...