On Fourth of July weekend the fireworks are just warming up for the August 9 primaries.
The City Council July 5th is scheduled to fill the vacancy of Michele Small who resigned her seat on Tuesday in the Upper East Side 138th District. The leading candidate, according to multiple sources, is Samia Suliman who occupied the seat for one term prior to her defeat in a primary last year. See full council agenda here.
Traditionally, though no force of law, members of respective Democratic Town Committee districts make recommendations to the City Council for a full vote. The City Charter requires the replacement be of the same political party.
Small ran with Maria Pereira for the district seat last year. Small has not stated publicly the reason for her resignation, but several council members maintain she grew weary of Pereira’s demanding litmus test on voting and political support.
City Council President Aidee Nieves said this week “I think Michele trusted her partner’s experience in giving her guidance, but didn’t allow herself the ability to foster relationships with other council members. Her personal voice as a councilwoman was never really heard. It’s a shame.”
No longer is it just a pattern for the control-thirsty Pereira to experience political divorces with candidates she has supported in her district, it is now inevitable.
Paging Nessah Smith. Paging Karen Jackson. Paging Suliman. Paging Small. And they are just a few. It’s all about them and never her, right?
Pereira’s zeal for rule has also infected the reelection campaign of State Rep. Jack Hennessy facing party-endorsed City Councilman Marcus Brown in an August 9 Democratic primary. The fallout for Hennessy so far is losing the “fully vested” support of two-time mayoral contender and former State Rep. Chris Caruso who brought Hennessy into the Bridgeport Democratic political fold when Hennessy first won election in 2004.
Caruso recently resigned as Hennessy’s campaign’s treasurer after butting heads with Pereira who’s managing Hennessy’s race on all levels.
Insulting statements like these, rationalizing Caruso’s resignation, from Hennessy supporter Marshall Marcus in the OIB comments section only adds fuel to the fire:
Not a power play or struggle. Caruso was kind enough to step up temporarily as the campaign started, but he does not use a computer and is not equipped to handle all the electronically submitted mandatory reports for the campaign. He like many people does not have a copy machine at home to copy all those checks before deposits can me made.
But he is fully invested in this campaign.
The statement above is a complete lie on several levels coming from someone who often challenges the veracity of Brown.
Did Marshall Marcus check with Caruso? How well does he even know Caruso?
Maybe the Hennessy-Brown race has turned into the battle of the best liars.
Meanwhile, there’s no questioning the will of Pereira to outwork anyone on the campaign trail.
In a June 17 email to OIB Pereira wrote: “If I may go out on a limb I honestly believe (Jack) is going to win EASILY.”
Hennessy may win but at what cost to his independence? Pereira will remind him relentlessly that she got him reelected. It’s what she does.
All for a power play.
Lennie…….
I have one question????
Did Chris Caruso specifically tell you that he resigned from Jack’s campaign because he butted heads with Maria? This is a YES or NO question.
BTW….I am not part of the Hennessy campaign, just a money contributor. My earlier comments about Mr. Caruso were based on things I heard around town, not directly from him. I don’t have to uphold journalistic standards by confirming with sources, as I don’t pretend to be a journalist.
Why would the Council force Samia Suliman back on the voters of the 138th district when the voters defeated her soundly?
If she is put on the Council, then she will not survive the September 2023 primary, that we all is coming because the 138th won’t blindly accept candidates hand chosen by the Ganim/Testa machine.
The antics of the BDTC continue to make Bridgeport a political embarrassment.
Maria P. is a Bridgeport Rose, but never accused of being thornless, you got to love her!
Or hate her, if you got pricked by that rose. I am sure Bradley is on the opposite of that love.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j2r2nDhTzO4
Lennie Grimaldi misunderstands the laws of political reciprocity..
If Hennessy wins, he will reward Pereira before she reminds him of her role.
She’s an ace campaigner and plays the long game.
Besides, this might be batting practice. If she can enable the multi-term Hennessy to defeat a DTC-endorsed candidate, it’ll boost her chances later on. She swings for the fences!
Marcus, chances are you hear that from Maria, besides losing run/council partners. That’s her MO. She generally belittles people, intellectually. I would even bet she wrote that herself Marcus or dictated it to you. 🙂
That being said, no one is going to deny she did work hard and puts in the work. Along with her acute intellect that’s a formable combination. However, she is going to have (I think) three partners/running mates, if she chooses to get one or find one, in three elections. That is unsuitable in politics. Words going to get out in her own distinct that she can work or comprise that all the door knocking will not fix
Lennie, I don’t think it is much of a cost to Hennessy. In some aspects, Maria is more valuable, work-wise. However, she is out of her distinct with marginal standing with the voting block. I have to say Caruso is a lost, on that aspect. Maria helped a lot of people get elected that she always finds herself on the wrong side of, including G2. So I think if Hennessy wins he would part ways.
Two long games are being played IOM Maria thinks she can’t outdo the establishment outside her home turf, and the establishment getting a pebble out of a city hall’s Shoe.
P.S Marcus, I agree Suliman might not be the wises choice. Smith gave Maria more of a run. Maria opened herself up. She’s in a race out of her turf, and one of the council seats that she won has been taken out from under her. It might seem Maria’s usefulness may have run its course. It is going to be interesting to see who wins, and who they appoint, who is ultimately going to run against Maria with a year plus foot hold.
If this was by design, well play. TWT about the execution.
https://www.youtube.com/shorts/aRs9chjmKvg