Connecticut Local Politics

And the field just gets more crowded. This morning, Dr. John Mertens, Chairman of the Connecticut for Lieberman Party, announced that he, too, is going to be running for Senate in 2010.
West Hartford Resident John Mertens will publicly announce his candidacy for the 2010 U.S. Senate Race during a campaign kick-off event & [...]

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I just got home and was stunned to read this terrible news. Though saramerica has already posted on the matter, I feel I have something worthwhile to add. Professor John Orman ought to be an inspiring figure to all who seek to reaffirm the impact of the individual citizen on the political process. Professor Orman, [...]

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Just heard some very sad news – the sudden death yesterday of Professor John Orman, of Fairfield University. . Dr. Orman was Department Chair of Politics at Fairfield University, having been a member of faculty since 1978 and a former Teacher of the Year. He encouraged his students to participate in politics and not [...]

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Two things jumped out at me when I looked at the Secretary of the State’s Press Release with the new voter registration numbers, one serious and one fun.
First, the serious:
Of the nearly 69,826 new voters between the ages of 18 and 29, 30,792 registered as Democrats, 30,683 registered as Unaffiliated and 7,876 registered as Republicans. [...]

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The Working Families Party announced today in a release that they were making some early endorsements, including U.S. Reps. John Larson and Joe Courtney, Jim Himes, and the following list of state legislators:
The state legislators who received early endorsements from the party are: Senator DeFronzo, Senator Looney, Senator Colapietro, Senator Handley, Senator Prague, Rep. Aresimowicz, [...]

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Speaking of cross-endorsing, here’s the Working Families Party lineup for New Britain and Norwalk. It’s all Democrats–although it isn’t the entire Democratic slate for each city. The WFP has endorsed candidates from both parties in the past, and according to Deb Noble, co-chair of the 5th Congressional District chapter of the WFP, “The ones who [...]

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A Sentinel Party used to be a pretty big deal in tiny Willington–that is, until Republicans and Democrats started sneakily, unfairly and unconstitutionally cross-endorsing one another’s candidates. This is the story that A Sentinal Party would like you–and a judge–to believe. From the Journal-Inquirer:
Three leaders of the third party, known as A Sentinel Party, have [...]

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The Working Families Party has decided to take advantage of Hartford’s minority representation laws by putting up it’s own slate of candidates. While Democrats can only hold six of the nine seats on the Hartford City Council, the minority representation doesn’t have to come from the Republican party. Thanks to the WFP’s slate [...]

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Hartford’s nine-member City Council always has six Democrats. That’s because, under the city’s charter, three seats on the Council must be set aside for “minority representation,” which usually means that they are won by an anemic Republican Party. This year, the Working Families Party would like to take their place, and are running a slate [...]

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Gov. Rell has signed into law a bill that at least one third/minor party is saying will give them a big boost. The bill, SB 1311, is mostly about the security and integrity of the voting process itself. However, the following section is what interests minor parties. From a Working Families’ Party release:
The new [...]

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Joe Lieberman and Ned Lamont were both the subject of newspaper editorials this weekend. One man was praised for his continued contributions to Connecticut politics; the other, criticized for agreeing to campaign for a Republican Senator’s reelection. Can you guess what was said about which man?
Let’s start off with Hugh Bailey from the [...]

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This afternoon I spoke with Bridgeport City Councilman Keith Rodgerson who confirmed that he is leaning towards an Independent run for Mayor. Rumors of a Rodgerson candidacy have been spreading around the 4th district ever since Fabrizi’s hasty exit from the race yesterday. Rodgerson himself left the Democratic party only a few weeks [...]

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Loyalty:
Farrell, former first selectwoman of Westport, said that although Lieberman’s Iraq position may be unpopular with many Fairfield County Democrats, she and the longtime senator have agreed on many other issues, and her endorsement was justified.
“Joe is a longtime friend and he has endorsed me and my campaign in the past,” Farrell said in a [...]

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Tonight I attended the second organizational meeting of the Connecticut for Lieberman Party. John Orman was reelected Chair, Jon Kantrowitz was unanimously elected Vice Chair, and Sue of MLN was also unanimously elected Secretary. Since the CFL Party currently has no plans to raise funds they chose not to elect a treasurer.
The party also [...]

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