Homeland Security Study

Our State Senator, David Cappiello (R-24), has asked for a study of our state's homeland security programs. You can read the full article here.

Sen. Cappiello said the following about the study:

"Since 9/11, state and local governments have worked with the federal government to coordinate a comprehensive emergency management program. What this study would do is provide us with an evaluation of this system to see what needs to be improved, modified or done away with."

This is probably not a bad idea since our security is so important, and we continue to face challenges everyday about our protection.

Danbury & Presidential Politics - 2000 Election

Some of you may be asking why this blog hasn't talked much at all about the 2008 Presidential Election. As you know this is a local blog, and reports on the politics of our city. Though, that doesn't mean that we can't talk about what is likely to be the most competitive, most fascinating presidential elections of all time.

To start I thought I would do a post on how Danbury has voted in the past two presidential elections. You may find the results interesting. The following is from the 2000 election.

In 2000, both parties needed to find a candidate to run for President. On the Republican side, then-Gov. George W. Bush and Arizona Sen. John McCain were the front runners. Alan Keyes, who worked under the Reagan administration, was a candidate as well. They were the top three. Bush was the conservative, right-wing candidate, while McCain was the moderate, straight talking candidate. Keyes was the choice if you didn't like them. Before the primary took place in Connecticut, McCain won the New Hampshire Primary, and Bush won the South Carolina Primary. When they came to Connecticut, Danbury Republicans showed their moderate side, as they picked McCain over Bush, but only by nine votes. Here was the run down:

George W. Bush – 902 (46.6%)
John McCain – 911 (47.1%)
Alan Keyes – 98 (5%)
Other – 13 (1%)

The Democratic candidates were basically just two people. They were, sitting Vice President Al Gore, and former New Jersey Sen. Bill Bradley. Gore ran as a more left-centered candidate, while Bradley ran as a much more liberal candidate. It has been said that Bradley may have done better if the media focused more on him. He and McCain were the underdogs, but because of McCain's big upset in New Hampshire, the media began to love him. Here in Danbury, Democrats decided, by a little less than 400 votes, to stick with the guy they new more, and the one who they trusted to be their Vice President for the past eight years. Here was how they voted:

Al Gore – 1411 (54%)
Bill Bradley – 1040 (40%)
Uncommitted – 138 (6%)

As the general election approached, it was a hard fought battle. Something that some find interesting is that neither Bush or Gore picked their rivals as their running mates (something Kerry did in '04). Bush picked Cheney, and Gore picked our Senator, Joe Lieberman. They both wanted to attract moderate voters. As we all know, Bush ended up winning based on the Supreme Court's decision to stop the recount in Florida, giving him the Presidency. As a whole, Connecticut gave its (at that time) eight electoral votes to Gore. He received fifty-six percent of the vote compared to thirty-nine percent for Bush. Voters from Danbury did almost the exact same thing. Here is how they voted:

Bush - 9,371 (40%)
Gore - 12,987 (55%)
Minor – 1199 (5%)

What does this all mean though? Well, you can see that the Republicans of our city are very moderate, and are your typical New England Republicans because they did go for McCain. The Democrats did give a solid showing towards Bill Bradley, but they were traditional, and went with the next person in line - Gore. We showed our Democratic streak come through when we look at the general election results as we gave much support to Gore. Now Danbury has become a little more Republican than it once was ever since the 2003 election. We will see that in the 2004 results when Danbury was much more favorable to Bush. Of course this part of Connecticut is the most Republican.

You may jump to your own conclusions. Part Two of this will be the 2004 election which will be posted soon. What are your thoughts?

Other Local Races

Not only is there a mayoral race this year, but we are expecting some pretty competitive races throughout. In 2005, the Democrats captured the Town Clerk's seat. That is the only seat out of the top four that they hold. This year it has been anticipated that they will put most of their effort into getting the City Clerk's seat. The Republicans will probably try hard to put up a very good candidate to challenge Town Clerk Lori Kaback.

Rumor was that Helena Abrantes was a likely candidate for City Clerk, but she has shown that she has her eyes on something bigger. Eileen Coladarci, who ran for City Clerk last time, is also said to be a possible candidate. Jean Natale barley was able to defend her seat two years ago, as she only received approximately 51% of the vote.

No big Republicans have really been rumored to be running for Town Clerk, but it is likely that one will likely emerge. Lori Kaback received many votes from Republicans last election, and her Lebanese background is definitely a plus as they tend to do very well (look at Sen. Cappiello and Councilman Saadi).

The City Treasurer race is not expected to be that competitive as of right now. Our current City Treasurer, Dan Jowdy, is well liked from both sides of the political spectrum. Don't be surprised though if the Democrats do put up a serious challenger against him. Rumor has it that they are focusing their attention mainly on the City Treasurer and City Clerk races, and trying to keep the Town Clerk race.

We have also heard that the one ward we should watch regarding the Council is the third. Currently, Republicans Joe Cavo and Michael Calandrino serve there. Cavo is the President of the Council.

We will have to wait and see which candidates emerge. Your thoughts?

First Poll Results

Before I give the results for our very first poll, I would just like to thank everyone who has visited this site, and to those who participated in this poll.

Well, it seems you like Mayor Mark Boughton. Our poll question was whether you did or didn't approve of the Mayor's job. The final vote was:

Yes - 14 (74%)
No - 5 (26%)
Undecided - 0 (0%)

There is a new poll up now so please go vote. And remember to comment on the stories. The next few months are going to be very interesting.

*** MAYORAL RACE UPDATE ***

It has been reported that former Common Council member and former City Clerk, Helena Abrantes, is going to announce that she is going to challenge Republican Mayor Mark Boughton.

Abrantes most recently was City Clerk, a position she lost in November of 2003 to our current City Clerk, Jean Natale. That was all part of the big Republican landslide that took place. She has also been very active within the Democratic Town Committee.

This doesn't come as much of a surprise as she has much name recognition, and an active Democrat. Recently, with the news that Councilman Tom Saadi and Councilwoman Lynn Taborsak (thought to be the most likely candidates...especially Saadi) not deciding to run, Abrantes may be one of the best candidates that the Democrats have.

I don't know what will happen. We will have to wait and see. I can say one thing ... she is the underdog.

I also felt that many of you may find this interesting. This was reported on the Democrats Town Committee website. It was part of the minutes from their January 8th Meeting (Emphasis done by me):

Election 2007: Kevin Morgan will chair the candidate search committee, please call him with any ideas you may have or any names of interested people you know of. We will need about 45 candidates to fill the positions open. The first and seventh wards often have a hard time finding suitable candidates so an early start should be helpful. In addition to the top of the slate, we also need Board of Ed candidate, Zoning, Constables and at large council candidates. Start looking now!

(A new poll coming tomorrow!)

Some Info

Just for your information.

• It has been rumored that Democratic Councilwoman Lynn Taborsak has decided that she will not run against Mayor Mark Boughton.



• Rumor also has it that the first Democrat who wants to challenge Mayor Boughton is going to come out soon.



• The News-Times website is down and has been for almost a week. We will have to wait and see what happens.



• This was announced a little over a week ago, but our Finance Director, Dena Diorio, has taken a position in North Carolina, and will be leaving the city by April. We wish her well. She was great!!!



• A new poll is going to be put on this site within the next couple of days. Now is your chance to take our current one.



• The 2007 election is going to be closely looked at. It has just began to start, and we have a long, exciting road ahead.

That's about it. By the way, if anyone has any suggestions about this blog or any stories they would like being written about, leave a comment.

Illegal Immigration

Ever since being elected, Mayor Boughton has made sure that the issue of illegal immigration has been addressed. Now this blog is a news blog that gives information about the politics of our city. It does not actively support politicians (though we may endorse candidates when we get closer to the election) , and doesn't give biased reports.

Though, we do feel that the Mayor has been very pro-active with this issue. He understands the history and the promise behind America, and the pride that this country has.

Paul Streitz, founder and co-director of CT Citizens for Immigration Control, filed a request Feb. 6th with the U.S. Attorney's Office in Hartford seeking a criminal investigation into the city's housing policies, the mayor's trip to Brazil last year, and whether the mayor prohibits the Danbury Police Department from enforcing immigration law. You can read the full article from the News-Times here.

I have come to the conclusion that maybe Paul Streitz claims Mayor Boughton encourages illegal immigration, but really Paul Streitz is the one that supports it! Your thoughts?

Mayoral Race Update

Another local blog, The DanburyDan, is reporting that Councilman Tom Saadi is not going to run for Mayor.

Here is what they say:

"Rumor has it that Democratic Councilman Tom Saadi has decided against taking on Mayor Mark Boughton this fall..."

Well ....... now what???

The Budget Addres

Governor Outlines Ideas In Speech

"It's a new vision, where we invest today for the rewards of tomorrow."

Yesterday, Governor Jodi Rell delivered her budget address in front of members of the General Assembly. It was look at with mixed feelings. In fact, Democrats actually had much more favorable views of it rather than the Republicans did.

Here is what our local area legislatures felt.

State Senator David Cappiello (R-24)
On the income tax:
"I am concerned, the states with no income tax are those that are doing much better at growing their economies and creating jobs."

State Representative Jason Bartlett (D-2)
On the education proposal:
"That seems to be to be a real home run."

State Representative Bob Godfrey (D-110)
On the general budget:
"I'd say this is the happiest budget proposal in my 19 years in the legislature."

State Representative Jan Giegler (R-138)
On the education proposal:
"If they have children in school, they might (like the idea) but if they don't have children, I don't know."

The proposal included much on education, health care, energy, and taxes. Here's a good link to get all the major parts officially from the Governor's Office.

Here are some highlights from the Governor's speech (courtesy of the Hartford Courant):

EDUCATION SPENDING REFORM
- $3.2 billion over five years for local schools
- $1.1 billion annually in increased funding to municipalities
- $150 million from surplus for teachers' pensions
- $50 million from surplus for school textbooks and maintenance
- $25 million in new financial aid for college students
- $16.1 million in additional early childhood education improvements.
- $669 in school construction funds

CAR TAX ELIMINATION
- Phase out tax over five years, along with property tax credit
- Replace funds with casino revenue
- Maintain property tax credit for senior citizens

PROPERTY TAX REFORM
- Increase state contribution to local schools from 40 percent to 50 percent.
- Increase maximum income rate from 5 percent to 5.5 percent
- Increase cigarette tax from $1.51 to $2 per pack

HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES
- $98.6 million from surplus devoted to Medicaid and health service costs.
- $18.9 million to extend health care to uninsured state residents at $250 per month, and as low as $75 for low-income adults.
- $8 million to expand HUSKY health benefit for children by enrolling newborns at hospitals and requiring school children to be enrolled.
- $65.4 million in new spending for juvenile justice programs
- $15 million to increase social service worker salaries

ENERGY
- $30 million from surplus for Energy Conservation program
- $35 million to restore full funding of renewable energy and energy conservation funds.
- Create tax incentives for consumers to reduce energy use
- Promote local production of bio-fuel crops

TRANSPORTATION
- $40 million for rail station and parking garage improvements
- 24 new electric rail cars for New Haven and Shore Line East lines
- $20 million annually to expedite highway bridge repairs
- Increase bus fares from $1.25 to $1.50

ENVIRONMENT AND RESPONSIBLE GROWTH
- $145 million in new bonding authority for clean water projects
- $30 million in bonding authority for purchase of open space
- $20 million in fiscal year 2009 for a responsible Growth Incentive Fund
- $2.7 million in grants and equipment to assist localities with responsible growth planning

So what do you think. Did the Governor do a good job? What is going to get passed, and what isn't? Feel free to comment.

They Agree On Something

As many of you know, the Mayor and the Police Department are at odds at times, especially when it came to their contract.


In the 2005 election the Police were extremely anti-Boughton, and campaigned against him. They stood at voting locations with various signs against Boughton. One in particular would be the signs that said S.O.B. which stood for "Sour On Boughton". They also posted this phrase on a truck that was where they were with a picture of a rat on it.

They had little impact in the election as Boughton coasted to a third term with 58% of the vote. It will be interesting to see if they come out again against him, even though they are getting a new Police Headquarters.

Today, the News-Times has an article about an agreement that Boughton and the Police have. You can read the whole article here.

It is getting interesting. We are starting to be in the campaign mode. Stay tuned........(DON'T FORGET TO TAKE OUR POLL!)

The Fifth District

This past November, 24 year incumbent Representative Nancy Johnson lost by about 12% to State Senator Chris Murphy. Johnson was ousted mainly because of the Democratic tide, and claims by Murphy that she was to close to President Bush.

In November of 2008 it will be the Republicans first chance to re-claim this seat. Some history about this district is that before Johnson, Democrat Jim Maloney held the seat. In 2002 the current fifth district and sixth district were put together because the state's population declined, and we lost one of our Congressional seats. Congresswoman Johnson represented the sixth district, and then beat Maloney in 2002.

Before being elected to Congress, Maloney was State Senator of the 24th district. He won the congressional seat in 1996 after an unsuccessful bid in 1994. Republican Mark Nielson, the current State Representative of the 138th district, succeed Maloney in the State Senate in 1996. He then challenged Maloney in 1998, and came very close to beating him. He did so again in 2000, but lost by a wider margin.

The 2002 election gave Republicans the seat for the first time in six years. Now that they have lost it, they need to find someone to fill it. An article in the Hartford Courant shows three people who have interest in this seat. They are talking about taxes. You can click the link below to read the article:

http://www.courant.com/news/local/columnists/hc-rgreen0206.artfeb06,0,5998519.column?coll=hc-utility-home

This has just started. Much more to come in. Stay tuned!

What's To Come

Well, now that the Super Bowl is over (Great job Colts!) it is time to get back to politics. I thought I would start with the news that you should expect to see on the blog within the next few months. Here it is:

1) The Municipal Election is just about nine months away. Expect change in the city based on the outcome of this election. Many races will be closely watched. They are:

• The Mayor - It all depends on who Boughton runs against (if it is who many think, than it will be a great, close, competitive race to watch).




• The City Clerk - Jean Natale barely survived the election two years ago, and the Democrats will target her to capture the seat. They will try to do what they did with the Town Clerk's race last election.




• The Common Council - Currently there are fourteen Republicans and seven Democrats on the Council. Democrats gained three seats in 2005 and expect them to gain more this year. Watch wards currently held by Republicans, and watch the Council-At-Large races because there is only one Democrat out of all of them.

2) The 2008 election will begin playing a big role with candidates emerging for different races. They include:

• President - This is going to be fun!




• Congress - especially the Republican nominee for the second and fifth district & the Democratic nominee for the fourth district (I heard some interesting news on that one - more to come).




• State Senate & State Rep. - depending on who runs for other races will determine if anyone runs for these.

Expect big analysis on these elections in the months to come. For the 2007 election this is you political resource for inside looks at all the local races. Come back often to see what's going on with the election, and the news around our city.

P.S. DON'T FORGET TO COMMENT ON THE STORIES &TAKE OUR POLL!!!

Super Bowl XLI: Colts or Bears?

It's time to take a break from politics today. It's Super Bowl Sunday!! Enjoy the game everyone!!

Danbury Delegation Contact Information

I was asked to post contact information for out State Representatives. Here is that info, along with our State Senator.

State Senator (24th District)
David Cappiello (R)

Email:David.Cappiello@cga.ct.gov
Address:

P.O. Box 2544
Danbury, CT 06813
Phone: (860) 240-8875

State Representatives

2nd District: Jason Bartlett (D)
Email: Jason.Bartlett@cga.ct.gov
Address:

Legislative Office Building, Room 4010
Hartford, CT 06106-1591
Phone:(860) 240-8585

109th District: Joe Taborsak (D)
Email: Joseph.Taborsak@cga.ct.gov
Address:

Legislative Office Building, Room 5006
Hartford, CT 06106-1591
Phone: (860) 240-8585

110th District: Bob Godfrey (D)
Email: Bob.Godfrey@cga.ct.gov
Address:

Legislative Office Building, Room 4107
Hartford, CT 06106-1591
Phone: (860) 240-8500

138th District: Jan Giegler (R)
Email: Janice.Giegler@housegop.state.ct.us
Address:

Legislative Office Building
Connecticut House Republicans Room 4200
Hartford, CT 06106
Phone: (860) 240-8700

Our State Representatives

A continuing of the elected officials series.Danbury is split up into four districts. The above map shows that. The following is a look at the four representatives that serve in these areas.

2nd District: Jason Bartlett (D)

The 2nd District is made up of parts of Danbury, Bethel, and Redding. Jason Bartlett was just elected to serve the area in November of 2006. He beat Republican Phil Gallagher, winning each of the three towns, and receiving 54% of the vote. Previously Bartlett attempted to serve the district in 2002 and 2004, by running against Republican Hank Bielawa. He got about 47% of the vote in 2002, and lost by only 87 votes in 2004.

109th District: Joseph Taborsak (D)

The 109th District is made up of just Danbury. It is currently served by Joe Taborsak who was just elected this past November because veteran legislature Lew Wallace decided not to run. He ran against Republican Gregg Seabury who serves on the Council. Seabury also ran unsuccessfully for State Representative in the 110th District in 2002 and 2004. Taborsak received 58% of the vote, and did much better than was anticipated. Interesting fact is that his mother, now Councilwoman Lynn Taborsak, once served this district.

110th District: Bob Godfrey (D)

The 110th District is also made up only of Danbury. Bob Godfrey currently represents the area. He has served the area since 1989, and has now earned himself the title of Deputy Speaker. This previous election he beat Republican Councilwoman Pauline Basso by gathering 67% of the vote. He has gathered bi-partisan support, and has high popularity. Godfrey also served for five years on the Common Council before being elected .

138th District: Jan Giegler (R)

The 138th District includes the west side of Danbury, and a small portion of New Fairfield. It is currently held by Jan Giegler. She was first elected in 2002 by only 16 votes, and re-elected in 2004 with 61% of the vote. She was the only Republican State Representative candidate to win in Danbury in 2006. Giegler defeated former Danbury Democratic Town Committee Chair Bernie Gallo, earning 55% of the vote. Mayor Boughton, State Sen. David Cappiello, and former State Sen. and Congressional candidate Mark Nielsein all once served this district.