Abandoning All Pretense. New Haven Democrats Holding Wednesday Morning Fundraiser.
It’s never enough. New Haven Democrats control all 30 of seats on the city’s Board of Alders–and are likely to do when voters return to the polls. Only six seats are uncontested this year, two fewer than in 2019. Nevertheless, lobbyists and others with interests in state government have been invited commanded to support a Democratic town committee fundraising event this Wednesday at 11 a.m.
The event will take place at the Neighborhood Cafe. Few legislative employees work at the LOB on Wednesdays, so some may take a rest from their labors at home and enjoy an early $100 lunch with lobbyists.
The New Haven Democrats want it all. Unlike most other Connecticut municipalities, the city is not subject minority representation. There are few registered Republicans. The party has a candidate for mayor, John Carlson. There are two Republicans competing for a board of education seat.
One party loyalist is alarmed at a local ballot that includes candidates who are not Democrats. “We have to make this election count in a big way so a Republican doesn’t get their pinkie in the door,” Ward 25 Democratic co-chair Janis Underwood told party faithful last month, according to the New Haven Independent.
New Haven Democrats won’t need whatever they raise from special interests Wednesday. The money will be spent on keeping the local party organization limber for 2022. Elm City Democrats provide their party with its largest haul of votes in statewide elections. It’s proved crucial since 2010.
However frosty relations remain between Governor Ned Lamont and Senate President Martin Looney (D-New Haven), Democrats understand that in the elections that matter most, the path to winning passes through New Haven. New Haven’s DTC chair is Vincent Mauro, who also serves as Looney’s top aide and enforcer.
Connecticut has one of the nation’s most generous public financing program of political campaigns for state and legislative elections. Money, however, always finds its way. New Haven provides one.