A New Mayoral Candidate

The race for Mayor just got an addition to it. John McGowan announced yesterday that he is running for the spot on the Concerned Citizens line. He believes that both Republicans and Democrats don't have the right vision and only argue, while getting nothing done. McGowan says that he is the best candidate to bring change. You can read the article here.

McGowan has received much criticism because he lives in Bethel. He does plan to move to Danbury before Election Day, November 6th. The other candidates for Mayor, incumbent Mark Boughton and challenger Helena Abrantes said that they welcome him into the race. However, Boughton added that it is "absolutely absurd" for him to run because he doesn't live in the city.

The race for Mayor has not gained much attention so far, so this may be just the type of thing that could bring some life to it. Who knows? It's now up to the voters to decide.

Bush Makes Predictions

President Bush has made a prediction, and it is that he feels Hillary Clinton will be the Democratic nominee for President. He also said that Republicans will prevail in the end, and beat her in a hard, tough battle. You can read it here.

Bush said that the reason Clinton will be nominated is because the race has become a national primary, and she has national appeal. He also noted his surprise that Rudy Giuliani has consistently remained the front runner on the Republican side, despite his moderate views on social issues, but said that it is probably because terrorism is such an important issue to voters. Giuliani has basically made terrorism his main issue in the campaign. Bush mentioned that John McCain should not be counted out either, as he is able to mount a comeback.

Overall a very interesting article regarding the President's views. The only question I wonder is who Bush wants to get the Republican nomination, and succeed him?

Mayoral Race

I'm a couple of days late on these stories but I still felt that I should post on them.

First, the Danbury Democrats believe that there should be a new moderator for the debate between Mayor Mark Boughton and challenger Helena Abrantes. They feel that the current moderator, Fran Collins, has connections to Boughton and has helped him during the campaign. You can read the article here from the News-Times.

Secondly, both mayoral candidates have said that they agree on having a public hearing on a possible electrical power plant in the city. You can read it here.

It's nice to see the News-Times starting to cover the election. Hopefully this will continue.

Another Congressional Candidate

Congressman Chris Murphy has another opponent. Harold Burbank II has announced his intention to run for the fifth district seat. You can read the article here from the News-Times.

Burbank said the reason he has decided to run is because of lies and abuse of the constitution by the Bush administration. He says Murphy should call for the impeachment of President Bush. If Murphy does, Burbank said he will not run. However, Murphy has mentioned that he has no intention of supporting impeachment.

According to Burbank, the Green Party has approached him to run on their ticket, however he hasn't made a decision. Republican State Senator David Cappiello is also running for Congress. Cappiello, who announced back in April, is expected to be the only Republican candidate running.

I'm not sure how much can be taken from this announcement, however I believe that Burbank could hurt Murphy a little. This could get interesting.

Speculation: The Town Clerk's Race

Earlier this year many people, including myself, thought that Democratic Town Clerk Lori Kaback would have a fairly easy ride to re-election. Many believed that the Republicans would basically surrender the seat, and focus their attention to keeping the other top three offices, especially City Clerk. This was not the case.

The Republicans got a former Democrat and Kaback supporter to run for Town Clerk. Not to mention that she is a very well known lady in our city, being President of D.A.Y.O. Pudgie Delohery is exactly the type of person the Republicans needed to run for the spot, and they should be very happy to have her on their team. She is simply known as "Pudgie!", and yes the explanation mark is included.

I have given the Republicans a lot of praise for their candidate choice mainly because of her popularity and the fact that she knows a wide range of people. Despite this, it wasn't until about two weeks ago until I actually saw my whole analysis truly carried out. It was at the Taste of Danbury, where for the first time I saw the public, not the politicians, showing me that this race is going to be the most interesting.

The amount of advertising that was around that Saturday night was amazing. So many people had either stickers or shirts for Pudgie, or they had Kaback stickers or balloons. Now, yes the other races had a big impact of what was seen throughout the event, but this race just stood out from the rest. Almost every single cheerleader had a sticker for Pudgie on, and so many teenagers had shirts on for her, which gave Pudgie a very good showing. Yes, I know, kids can't vote, but their parents can and people like to see a candidate that has good student-educational appeal (though it has really no relevance to what the Town Clerk does). Now, don't get me wrong, Kaback had a very good showing as well, and that's why this race is so intense because both candidates are very closely matched.

Back when the Republicans announced their slate, I believed that they would go out in full force to gain the Town Clerk's seat. However, that was not the case for the many weeks that followed. It appeared to me that maybe this wouldn't be a very good race, and that Kaback would easily win. This was mainly because Kaback had a very strong showing throughout the summer, and Pudgie was really nowhere in sight. She has come back though, and is making an impact. Ever since earlier this month, she has showed that she is in this to win.

The only question I ask is should Pudgie of started earlier? Also, will Kaback be able to bring the magic she brought two years ago? We will soon find out. This is going to be a very good one to watch!

UPDATE (9/29/07): Pudgie has put up a website and Kaback also has one up. The links are on the side.

Poll Results

The latest poll question was if you have decided on a specific candidate to support for President. Here are the results:

Yes: 9 (47%)
No: 12 (53%)

Thanks for voting. This is sure going to be one of the best elections we will ever see, no matter who the candidates are. By the way, who do you want to see face each other in 2008? Rudy vs. Hillary? Obama vs. McCain? Romney vs. Hillary? Thompson vs. Edwards? Obama vs. Romney? Rudy vs. Obama? Hey maybe even Chris Dodd vs. Sam Brownback (just kidding).


Make sure to take our new poll.

Follow Up On "Danbury 11"

Yesterday, we reported that two candidates running for the Common Council this year went to Hartford on Monday to rally in favor of the eleven illegal immigrants who who were arrested a year ago. Today Republicans running in the third ward against Lynn Taborsak, spoke out. Here is the article from the News-Times.

The following are some main points from the article.

Council President Joe Cavo said the following on the issue:

"I just find it outrageous that someone running for office would be out there supporting people breaking our laws."

Councilman Mike Coladrino said the following on the immigration issue:

"When I first ran in 2003, illegal immigration was a big campaign issue. It was big in 2005, and from what I'm hearing when I go door to door, it's still a big issue in 2007."

Danbury Democratic Chairman Joe DaSilva had the following to say on Taborsak and the issue of illegal immigration:

"People can agree that laws need to be enforced, and they can disagree on how this case was handled. Lynn Taborsak has a long career in Danbury of helping people."

Let's just say that this issue is likely to come up again throughout the next few weeks. Could this really make or break a certain candidate? Could Lynn Taborsak really be in trouble? Will people really care? What's going to happen? Look for a post speculating this in the next couple of days.

Candidates Back "Danbury 11"

The eleven illegal immigrants that were arrested last year, or as they are refereed to as the "Danbury 11", had their case heard in front of a federal judge yesterday. The issue of the case is that they felt the arrests were conducted in a way that went against the law. You can read the article here from the News-Times.

However, a big reason I posted this was because two Democratic candidates running for the Common Council were there to rally in favor of those arrested, citing that the arrest were not conducted legally. They were current Councilwoman at Large Lynn Taborsak, who is running in the third ward this November, and Christine Halfar, who's running in the seventh ward.

Taborsak had to say the following to the incident:

"What were Danbury police doing in that sting? They planned it. Can you believe we didn't know that in Danbury?" Taborsak said she attended Monday's court case because, "I always have to do the right thing."

The following is why Halfar said she was in attendance:

"They had no warrants for their arrest. They had no case beforehand. I'm supporting people from my town who were unjustly seized in an ICE raid."

Just to note, Taborsak is running against Republican incumbents Mike Calendrino and Council President Joe Cavo, in the third ward. Halfar is challenging incumbent Republican Councilwomen Mary Teicholz and M. Jane Diggs in the seventh ward.

Lawmakers And The Environment

The Connecticut League of Conservation Voters rated state lawmakers on their voting record impacting the environment. Here is the article from the News-Times.

The following is how our legislatures from Danbury were ranked:

State Sen. David Cappiello (R-24): 64%

State Rep. Jason Bartlett (D-2): 82%
State Rep. Joe Taborsak (D-109): 73%
State Rep. Bob Godfrey (D-110): 67%
State Rep. Jan Giegler (R-138): 57%

Election News

Both the Democrats and Republicans have links on their websites to pictures and biographies of their party's candidates. You can view them to see for yourself what type of experience each person running for office has.

Also, I have put up a two new sections on the side of this blog, one has links to any of the candidates that have websites. If more come out, you can find them there. I added another section that will have links to letters to the editor that have been featured in the News-Times regarding the upcoming election. Continue to look there if you are interested to see what fellow Danburians have to say about certain candidates. I will be updating the section daily, as long as there are letters in the paper.

Another new part that will be featured on this blog, is that I will have posts that will speculate different races of the 2007 election. Many of the very competitive ones will probably be written on more often, and will feature valid points from both sides. Don't also forget that we will be endorsing a candidate for Mayor on Sunday November 4th, two days before Election Day.

Now that the election is less than two months away, this blog is going to be in election mode. Stay tuned, you're in for a good ride!

UPDATE (9/15/07): Mayor Mark Boughton has put up his website, as well as Town Clerk Lori Kaback. The links are on the side. Also, if anyone has any ideas on what they would like me to cover or report on, feel free to leave it in the comment section, or email it to danburypolitics@gmail.com.

I Told You So

If you remember, a couple of weeks ago, I posted on the troop surge in Iraq. I mentioned that if reports came back that were positive, that one person would benefit the most, being John McCain.

It turns out that I was right.

Abrantes Releases Radio Ad

Democratic candidate for Mayor, Helena Abrantes, has released her first radio ad of the campaign. The message of it is mainly that "Danbury Can Do Better". The one minute ad stresses the main points that Abrantes and the Democrats would focus on if elected this November, and re-claim the majority of the city. Here is a transcript of the ad:

Danbury: we can do better. This November let’s elect Helena Abrantes Mayor, and the entire Democratic team.

Helena Abrantes: wife, mother of two sons, former city clerk, legislative leader, and three term council member, recipient of state and local awards, a businesswoman, community leader, and volunteer.

Helena Abrantes: leadership and experience to return vision, hope, respect, and results for Danbury.

As Mayor, Abrantes will keep taxes down and reduce water rates, stop uncontrolled development, employ smart growth, and attract more quality jobs, make major traffic improvements, fix roads and bridges, invest in our children and education, add 24 new police officers to make Danbury safer, establish the Danbury goes green initiative, and add more open space, all to better our environment and overall quality of life.

Elect Helena Abrantes Mayor and the entire Democratic team because Danbury can be better.

Overall, a very positive ad that touches on who and what Helena Abrantes is all about. Hopefully more is to come, on both sides.

UPDATE (9/13/07): Though this doesn't have to do with Abrantes I promised I would post if any candidates have websites up that are running this fall. Today I came across one for City Clerk Jean Natale.

We Will Never Forget

Today marks the sixth anniversary of the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. Our hearts and prayers go out to the families that lost loved ones on this terrible day.

God Bless America

A Taste of Politics

Yesterday, I attended the Irish Festival and the Taste of Danbury. Here is a look at who was there and what I saw. Just a note that I want to stress is not to go by just what I have posted because I may have missed a few people, but I tried my best to catch everything.

First of all, I was at the Irish Festival late in the afternoon and it was fairly quiet. There were a decent amount of people, but not like I've seen before. It was also not filled with many people running for office. The only candidates I saw were Jim Kelly, who is a Democrat running for the Council in the third ward, and Phil Curran who is a Republican running for the Council at Large. However, there were many sponsored signs from elected officials there that greeted people when they arrived. There were signs from State Sen. David Cappiello, State Rep. Jan Giegler, Councilman Tom Saadi, Ben Chianese, Paul Rotello, Mary Saracino, Phil Curran, Mayoral candidate Helena Abrantes, City Treasurer Dan Jowdy, City Treasurer candidate Brian Cotter, City Clerk Jean Natale, Town Clerk Lori Kaback, and Town Clerk candidate Pudgie Delohery. I believe that was all of them. Then, in the early evening I headed downtown.

The Taste of Danbury was a totally different story. As soon as I got there you could tell from all the balloons that this was the place where all of the campaigning was taking place. There were many balloons for Mayor Boughton, very few for Helena Abrantes, many for Treasurer Dan Jowdy and Town Clerk Lori Kaback. Also noticeable were people with stickers for Boughton, Jowdy, Natale, Coladarci, and many for Kaback and Delohery. It has become very obvious that the race for Town Clerk is the one with the most excitement and will be very hard fought until the end. Many people had shirts for Delohery, and they would travel in packs which gave her a very good showing, something she needed to boost her campaign. However, the presence of Kaback supporters were known as well. There were also a few people with shirts and stickers for Dan Jowdy, City Clerk candidate Eileen Coladarci, and I happened to only catch two people with Abrantes shirts. Also, I saw all the candidates running on the top of the ticket except Abrantes, Natale, and Cotter, who actually had no presence at all.

There were many other candidates there running for the Council. The Republicans there were first ward Council members Louise McMahon and Shay Nagarsheth, and seventh ward Council member Mary Teicholz. The Democrats were candidates Warren Levy and Manny Furtado. Teicholz had stickers, as well as Levy and Nagarsheth. However, they were clearly lost in the crowd. Also, Republicans had a pamphlet of all there candidates on a table near the entrance.

On another note, the Taste of Danbury clearly had a great showing, and was absolutely packed, mainly because of singer Eddie Money who was performing. It was a night enjoyed by all.

What's To Come

I thought I'd take this time to let everyone know what to expect to see on this blog in the coming months. Now that Labor Day is over, a lot more people seem to be interested in the upcoming election as well as the one for President (I happened to be at a store today and the cashier asked me who I thought would be elected President...this race is gaining traction).

Here's a list of what's to come:

• I will be posting regularly regarding the upcoming election, analyzing the top races as well as the Council races which are going to be very interesting.

• I'll also post any articles that happen to make it in the News-Times regarding the election, that is if they manage to write any.

• I have decided that this blog is going to endorse a candidate for Mayor. I flirted with the idea to endorse others, but I think it is better if we just endorse the person for the top office. Just to note the endorsement will be based on what we will be seeing these next couple of months, past records and accomplishments, as well as the candidates vision for the future. The endorsement will come on Sunday November 4th, two days before the election.

• I will be attending a couple of festivals this weekend and will report back to who I see and what type of literature is being handed out. Remember, I may miss some people and won't be there everyday, so just don't go by what I say.

• I will also post on the race for Congress here in the fifth district, as well as the race for President .

Hope everyone is enjoying their weekend. Don't forget to take the latest poll!

Here We Go!

Since Labor Day has just passed, that means that it is now the unofficial start of the campaign season. From now until election day, all candidates for local office will be out in full swing, walking door to door, sending out campaign literature, and trying to get support from those that are undecided.

This year's election is anticipated to have many competitive races. For example, the City Clerk and Town Clerk races, as well as those for the Common Council. Democrats only need to pick up four seats to re-gain the majority for the first time since 2003. The race for Mayor is probably not going to be as competitive, being overshadowed by the other races.

The mood of the city is going to be what determines who claims victory in November. At this point it is really hard to predict who is going to win the close races. All that can be said is that for the next two months, we are going to watch these races unfold, which should be very interesting.

By the way, few candidates have campaign websites up. The only ones I have come across are Eileen Coladarci, who is running for City Clerk, and Councilwoman Mary Teicholz, who is running for a third term in the seventh ward. If more come up I'll post them.