Barring a write-in miracle for City Council seats, the general election is mostly all about who’ll occupy the minority party slots on the Board of Education: Republicans or Working Families Party candidates, or perhaps a split.
Democratic school board candidates Christine Baptiste-Perez, Erika Castillo and Michael Maccarone enjoy a monumental voting registration advantage.
The WFP has endorsed incumbent Joe Sokolovic, Khalid Muhammad and Jose Lopez.
Republican candidates are led by current board chair John Weldon, and Mary Gaits and Peter Perillo.
With little on the line for Democrats, absentee ballot action has been rather tame by Bridgeport standards, just 1,200 returned to the Town Clerk’s Office, according to the Monday count. What will the walk-in vote be Tuesday? Will the citywide turnout even hit 10 percent?
Of all the write-in candidates East End City Council incumbent Eneida Martinez, defeated by a small margin in the primary by anti-vaxxer Wanda Simmons, is putting on the biggest push.
Simmons, who preaches government transparency ad nauseam, apparently forgot that should also apply to her. She’s no different than any other selfish pol in the city hiding something until forced to disclose. During primary campaigning she did not volunteer to people she’s loathe to taking vaccines, irrespective of touching people, campaign workers and contributors, door knobs and toiling among large crowds of people including primary night. A few days later she was diagnosed with Covid.
Now, just imagine the tone of the primary campaign had Simmons disclosed her aversion to vaccines?
She loses.
Period.
End of story.
Next case.
Martinez has kicked out a heady video via social media explaining to voters the write-in process. She, and surrogates (paging council partner Ernie Newton), must stand in front of Dunbar and Harding precincts reminding voters of the task at hand. She will likely perform better at Dunbar where she is well known. In the primary Simmons scored well at Harding.
Simmons appears on two lines, Democratic and Working Families Party. Victoria Majewski also is backed by the WFP for council.
Assuming a Simmons victory, City Council President Aidee Nieves, a heavy favorite to once again lead the legislative body for two more years, has a decision to make about the future of in-person meetings delayed because of the health emergency. Even if you’ve been vaxxed, who wants to be near Simmons who is not? She could get it again and potentially spread it again.
How does Nieves, and by extension the council, handle this and other future anti-vaxxers?
Wake up Bridgeport and Vote Row D, WFP, for the BOE! With the Republican slate sending out mailers accusing me of being “woke” (guilty as charged), like it’s a bad thing, we cannot have them on our board of Ed! In addition the Republican chair of the BOE disgusting posts to Facebook that state , “African American people who call themselves black are ignorant”, and also sharing joke toys calling gays sinful is the kind off leadership our children do not need.
Row D candidates stand for equity and inclusion. During my term I started a diversity equity and inclusion committee, and as chair of teaching applied an equity lens to all curriculum to ensure cultural relevancy.
Just a look at all the Republican anti-vaxers storming board meetings shouting “unmask our kids” across the country. Do we want to entrust them to the most important position in the city?
There are 9 candidates running for the BOE, voters get to choose 3. We know the 3 Dems will win. It’s the last two seats that are in contention between WFP and the R’s. To keep the seats out of the Republican’s hands people must drop their votes down to row D. This will not hurt the Dems, all 3 will still be elected and I have no issue with them.
So I ask you Bridgeport voters WAKE UP and take 1, 2,or 3 of your votes and vote Sokolovic and ROW D wherever you see.
Lennie, any Wanda Simmons sightings yet? Rumor has it she’s passing out her campaign literatures using a ten foot pole.
Lenny have you ever heard of breakthrough covidcases?
In the meantime — https://www.ctpost.com/news/article/Development-deal-to-overhaul-downtown-Bridgeport-16576213.php (SURPRISE! Exact Capital must have figured that there was no money left for them to play with after the $12 million was gobbled up for the amphitheater…)
Just call me Nostradamus.
http://onlyinbridgeport.com/wordpress/ganim-selects-developer-to-revitalize-closed-downtown-theaters/#comment-128388
Turn out at Black Rock 524 6:15pm
Cesar A. Batalla School 181 votes at 3:00pm
3:45 p.m. — Bridgeport
Nearly 1,300 absentee ballots were returned in Bridgeport as of Nov. 2 at 3 p.m., according to a report released by the Bridgeport town clerk.
Of those, 1,179 were Democrats, 43 Republicans and 58 Unaffiliated. Three were identified as other.