State, Races Solidified—

Candidates Step Up For Public Financing As Legislative Contests Heat Up

By John Voket

Now that the top of ticket political races appear to be solidifying at the national level with Democrat Senator Barack Obama laying claim to his party’s endorsement, and the confirmed GOP endorsement of Senator John McCain, local races at the state and federal level are picking up momentum as well.

Several local candidates have recently announced they are in the process of qualifying to participate in a voluntary program to publicly fund campaigns for statewide office and the legislature. To date, the Associated Press is reporting that 145 Connecticut candidates have signed up.

In return, those candidates must forgo contributions from political action committees, raise small contributions from individuals and adhere to campaign spending limits and other restrictions. The proponents of the law expect it will give average citizens more of a voice in Connecticut politics and reduce the influence of special interests.

Candidates who qualify can receive $25,000 for a state House race, and $85,000 for a state Senate race. This is the first time Connecticut has used public financing in its statewide campaigns; it is one of five states in the country to do so.

In order to qualify for public financing, state representative candidates must raise at least $5,000. They also must receive donations from at least 150 people in the towns they will represent.

According to Connecticut Common Cause, Arizona and Maine have been using a similar program for several elections with successful results. In Connecticut, the money for the program comes from unclaimed property.

Every year, the state receives $60 to $90 million in unclaimed property, including dormant bank accounts, unclaimed life insurance policies, and unclaimed stock. After attempts to notify the heirs, the treasurer’s office puts $16 million into the Citizen’s Election Fund, and the rest goes into the general fund. The amount put into the election fund makes up about 0.1 percent of the total budget, according to Connecticut Common Cause.

Locally, Republican 106th District challenger, Will Rodgers, told The Bee this week that he is days away from filing the necessary documentation to participate in the public financing program.

“I’ve surpassed the threshold to qualify for public campaign funding at this point, and should be filing the final paperwork within a few days,” Mr Rodgers said.

In related news, he announced Sunday that former Newtown Finance Director Ben Spragg has agreed to serve as treasurer for the Legislative Council chair’s campaign in the 106th District. That announcement was made during a fundraiser.

Diverting his attention from the business at hand, Mr Rodgers also revealed to supporters who gathered at the home of Robert and Kathy Geckle, that he and his wife, Moira, were celebrating the news that their daughter, Amelia, had recently become engaged to a college acquaintance from Milford, Jeremiah Tracy.

Refocusing on the legislative race, Mr Rodgers said in an interview June 3, that a launch of his campaign Internet website is days away, and that once he has completed the task of retaining campaign staff, he will begin formulating public outreach activities.

In addition, Mr Rodgers said he has already met twice with the state GOP campaign team officials in Hartford, and attended a GOP planning session for all house candidates which was held on May 31.

Mr Rodgers’ sole Democratic challenger, fellow councilman Chris Lyddy announced May 27 that his candidate’s committee has met the qualifications for public financing.

“Finishing my fundraising early will allow me to focus on meeting with people and talking with voters,” said Mr Lyddy in a prepared statement. “The most important part of this race is being in touch with voters and finding out what matters to them.”

Following the recent Democratic caucus, Secretary of the State Susan Byseweicz will need to certify the results for Mr Lyddy to officially be on the ballot. At that point, the State Elections Enforcement Commission (SEEC) will review his paperwork before awarding him the grant.

Daniel C. Rosenthal, son of former First Selectman Herb Rosenthal is serving as Mr Lyddy’s campaign treasurer.

A Contest In The 112th

In the other local statehouse race, attorney Michele Mount recently received her party’s nomination for state representative of the 112th District, which covers Newtown’s southwestern voting district. Ms Mount has lived in Monroe for ten years with her husband and two children.

Her son is a student at Masuk high school and her daughter attends a local grammar school.

“My experience as a practicing real estate attorney for 15 years and most recently as Director of Legislative Affairs for Bridgeport has taught me how to represent clients and constituents effectively while building relationships with our leaders in Hartford,” Ms Mount said in a campaign release. She said the strong foundation she has in representing the interests of her fellow citizens was learned from her father, Carl Ajello. He served as a state legislator for 12 years, House Majority Leader for six years and Attorney General for eight years.

“I believe that a person who listens to all citizens and cares about the future of her community can make a difference. I will do everything I can to ensue that my fellow citizens’ concerns are represented effectively in Hartford,” she said. “That’s what they expect and deserve.”

To be able to devote maximum time to focus on representing citizens instead of fundraising, Ms Mount also plans to finance her campaign through the Citizens Election Program. Interested district constituents are invited to visit her website: www.mountforstaterep.com to learn more about her, share their concerns, and donate to help her qualify for a state grant.

She can also be reached via e-mail at: mountforstaterep@gmail.com.

The 112th District incumbent, DebraLee Hovey, recently received unanimous support to seek another term. Ms Hovey has represented Monroe and Newtown since 2002.

According to a release, Representative Hovey has served as Ranking Member of the Education committee and prior to that was the Ranking Member of the very prestigious Executive and Legislative Nominations Committee.

Rep Hovey says she is looking forward to running again and campaigning.

“I have gotten a lot done and brought home the money that my towns need but there is still more to do,” she said. “We need to deal with the affordable housing, zoning issues, (to) assure our children are being educated, (to) protect our environment and quality of life, and give our citizens some breaks in their costs for living here.”

The Race For State Senate

The Bee recently reported that 28th District Republicans officially nominated State Senator John McKinney to run for a sixth term in the representing the towns of Newtown, Easton, Fairfield, and Weston. Sen McKinney, who was elected Minority Leader in June 2007, is the highest ranking Republican in the Senate and serves as the ranking senator on the legislature’s Environment, Legislative Management, and Executive Nominations committees.

Sen McKinney’s nomination was seconded by Mr Rodgers.

“We have made progress on a number of important issues in recent years,” Sen McKinney said. “Working directly with Governor Rell and legislative leaders from both parties, we have passed legislation to provide tax credits to small businesses that create new jobs, cap greenhouse gas emissions to protect our environment, increase funding for open space and farmland preservation and create Jessica’s Law for Connecticut, establishing mandatory jail sentences for child sex offenders and predators who use the Internet to harm our kids.”

In addition to his leadership on state budget issues, McKinney has been a leader for cleaning up state government and protecting taxpayers from waste, fraud, and abuse. Sen McKinney was the first legislator to call for the creation of an Office of Inspector General.

Sen McKinney is facing Democratic challenger Martin A Goldberg. Mr Goldberg has been a Fairfield attorney, in private practice, specializing in tax, business, estate planning and probate since 1979.

Eight years ago he began practicing law part time, becoming an associate professor at the University of New Haven College of Business. There, he teaches business law to undergraduate and graduate business students, and advanced taxation courses to graduate taxation students.

Mr Goldberg earned his bachelor’s degree in English at Clark University, a master’s degree in journalism at Boston University School of Communication, a law degree at University of Connecticut School of Law, and a graduate law degree in taxation at New York University School of Law. He grew up in Stamford, and lives in Fairfield with his wife Cindi.

He is on the Advisory Board of the Connecticut Forum, and is a member of the Fairfield Affordable Housing Committee, and the Fairfield Democratic Town Committee. Mr Goldberg said in a campaign release that he is strongly in favor of healthcare, protecting the environment, ethics, sustainable tax policy and education.

“In terms of healthcare and growing the economy, we have to invest in the future,” he said. “Part of it is having a healthy and educated workforce. There is a great overhaul between education and healthcare. Educated people are better able to understand things like nutrition and health. The two issues are related. Good healthcare helps education.”

Mr Goldberg said he has spent a quarter of a century as a tax lawyer and said he believes in strong penalties for violations in ethics. And because of his wide range of legal experience, specifically in regards to tax laws and estate planning, he is “oriented to help people and make sure that businesses spend the least amount of money on taxes.”

“The problem with my opponent and Republicans,” he said, “is they believe in cutting taxes, which is not a benefit if it ends up costing more money in the long run.” Mr Goldberg said he also strongly favors transparency in government.

“The voters have the right to know how government money is being spent, especially when money is going overseas,” he said. “There should not be prohibition. Voters should make up their own mind about where tax dollars are going.”