Category — Posts

It has not been going as they expected. Endorsements have been thin on the ground and money has not flowed like it once did. Expect Luke Bronin to appear before his home Democratic town committee (Hartford, not Greenwich) to renew his rickety commitment to the city and announce he will not be a candidate for the Democratic nomination for governor.

Bronin has been exploring the race and found it heavy-going. One of the toughest blows came when Attorney General George Jepsen announced on March 26th that he will support Ned Lamont for governor. That began a quiet move among party leaders toward the wealthy Greenwich Democrat, the emerging alternative to Susan Bysiewicz.

The first term Hartford mayor wins dull marks for staying late at party meetings and socializing with activists, but it has not been a winning strategy. In a crowded field, one can’t win by relying on text messages to arrange for post-meeting drinks to snag delegate commitments.

This has been a tough year for Democratic mayors. Middletown’s Dan Drew was the first in and first out of the contest for governor.

Good thing he switched races. Republican Mark Greenberg raised just $34,576 in his bid for his party’s nomination for comptroller. In the recently concluded 1st quarter of the year, Greenberg raised a puny $7,340.

Greenberg is expected to make a fourth run for the Republican nomination in the state’s 5th CD. Party leaders are looking for an alternative and have hopes invested in William Petit.

Poor Jonathan Harris. He suggested long ago that his fundraising was going great. Today, the Democratic operative whose 2014 campaign emails cost state Democrats more than $300,000 to keep secret is still nagging potential donors for contributions. Harris wants to celebrate National Equal Pay Day by giving money to a man–him.

First term state Senator Eric Berthel (R-Watertown) not seek the Republican nomination in Connecticut’s 5th Congressional District. Berthel was an early party favorite for the nomination in the aftermath of Democratic incumbent Elizabeth Esty’s implosion over her failure to protect female staff members from harassment and alleged violence in the office.

Berthel will seek a full term in November.

William Tong picks up a helpful endorsement from Toni Harp, mayor of New Haven and leader of Democrats. The race for the Democratic nomination for attorney general has been intense in New Haven. The size of the delegation makes it one of the convention’s big prizes.

Christopher Mattei, a Hartford Democrat who spent plenty of time in New Haven during his years as an assistant U.S. attorney has some support there. State Representative Michael D’Agostino is from nearby Hamden and has been emerging as a labor favorite.

In other AG news, Republican John Shaban filed what supporters will see as a disappointing fundraising report. The former state representative has raised a paltry $19,000 and has just $9,000 on hand.

Oy vey iz mir.

Last month’s Penny Bacchiochi endorsement of her formal rival–the one she characterized as a racist in 2014–David Walker came with a hefty price tag. Walker’s gubernatorial campaign paid Bocchiochi $5,000 a six days after her March 7th endorsement. They expense appears in Walker’s first quarter fundraising report as a March payment to the former Republican state legislator who placed second in the 2014 primary for lieutenant governor, ahead of the last place Walker.

Bacchiochi has lowered her price. She made considerably more lobbying for loosening laws regulating medical marijuana while the issue was making its way through the Connecticut legislature.

Walker has hired Bacchiochi to lead his convention operation where it’s do-or-die to win 15% of the vote on any ballot. Walker has $97,000 on hand, according to his campaign finance report. Whatever’s left after the convention would not be enough for the self-regarding Walker to mount a signature-gathering campaign to secure a place on the August primary ballot.

William Tong is a candidate for attorney general. Three days after a poor showing in the AFL-CIO poll of Democratic contenders, Tong announced in an email message that he is in the race. Tong had made some noises about exploring a race for governor before incumbent Democratic Attorney General George Jepsen announced he would not seek a third term.

Here’s the Phillips’ Academy graduate’s announcement:

State Senator Paul Doyle (D-Wethersfield) is more than 2/3 of the way to the magic $75,000 he will need to qualify for public funding in the crowded race for the Democratic nomination for attorney general. Doyle raised his funds through an exploratory committee that he converted to a candidate committee in March.

Doyle will need to win 15% of the votes on any ballot at the Democratic state convention in May as the other prong in the trudge to winning a spot on the primary ballot and having money to pay for a campaign between the convention and the August vote by enrolled party members.

Tuesday, April 10th is the deadline for candidates to file first quarter campaign finance reports. Some candidates for statewide office–not Doyle–have been calling party leaders to warn them of disappointing fundraising numbers.

State Senator Kevin Witkos will not seek the Republican nomination for Congress in the 5th District. Witkos will run for a sixth term representing the 8th State Senate District, which includes Simsbury, Canton, and Avon among its 11 towns.

Witkos is the second ranking Member of the Republican caucus. He began his legislative career with a 2002 upset victory over state Representative Jessie Stratton, who had hoped to become speaker of the house in the term Witkos and voters in Canton and Avon denied her.

Republicans in the 5th are awaiting an announcement from state Representative William Petit (R-Plainville) o whether he will run for the seat suddenly open after beleaguered Democratic incumbent Elizabeth Esty announced she would not seek a fourth term.