A couple of thirty-somethings are going at it to fill the seat of retiring State Senator Ed Gomes in Connecticut’s 23rd District where Gomes hopes he’s replaced by his former administrative aide Aaron Turner and Mayor Joe Ganim, a candidate for governor, urges a vote for candidates on Line B, his line, except for party-endorsed Dennis Bradley on the top line for the August 14 primary. Turner appears two slots down from Ganim.
Primary contests are an exercise in educating voters, in this case informing Democratic electors to cherrypick candidates according to their various alliances. While Gomes is supporting party-endorsed Ned Lamont for governor, his political protege is more nuanced about Ganim’s underdog face-off with Lamont in a district Ganim is expected to perform strongest potentially benefiting Turner’s candidacy. Some of this depends on the effort of operatives reminding voters in front of polling locations about ballot spots, for instance a palm card selectively filled in or a shout out “Vote Line B, except for Bradley Line A” or in Turner’s case operatives just pushing his name on Line B. In campaign tactical parlance this is called bullet voting.
Bradley, 34, a member of the Board of Education, is a seasoned campaigner having waged two state legislative races and a successful citywide campaign for the school board in 2015 running on Ganim’s mayoral line. Two years ago he lost a primary to Gomes. This time around most of the party organization is support Bradley. Turner, 31, has stitched together a band of reformers, Gomes loyalists and operatives from the Connecticut Working Families Party. One area of hot absentee ballot action is the Upper East Side that covers the Hooker and JFK voting precincts. Nearly 400 requests for absentee ballots have been mailed by the Town Clerk’s Office to Democratic electors in those combined precincts. One of Turner’s key operatives there is school board member Maria Pereira.
Ganim operatives carried all nine seats in March’s Upper East Side Democratic Town Committee primary.
Connecticut’s 23rd Senate District covers roughly two thirds of Bridgeport and a portion of western Stratford. It has historic underpinnings dating to 1980 when a determined funeral home director Margaret Morton, a transformational figure in city politics, wrangled the seat from incumbent Sal DePiano in a tight primary, becoming the first African American woman elected to the Connecticut State Senate. In succession the seat has been served by Morton, Alvin Penn, Ernie Newton, Ed Gomes, Andres Ayala and Gomes, once again.
This race will likely be edgy in the final week. In April, Turner filed an SEEC complaint against Bradley accused of an inappropriate financial overture to a Stratford mayoral candidate, something Gomes cites in the video above. Bradley denies the charges.
Bradley and Turner have received public funds under Connecticut’s Citizens Election Program that infuses $84,450 in a primary for qualifying senate candidates in a party dominant district. They were required to raise $15,000 in donations of $250 or less to trigger the grant, so in total they will spend $100,000 each from their candidate committees.
Dennis Bradley and Joe Ganim belong together because they are both losers, one doesn’t know and the other doesn’t care.
LOL
They belong together because they are both lying, thieving weasels.
For the pleasure to meet Turner at downtown Thursday last week very nice guy and I feel he actually cares for the city. I don’t vote in the 23 district wish him all the best.
“Teacher’s union supports Turner for state senate seat”
BRIDGEPORT – The city’s teacher’s union has bypassed a city school board member to endorse Aaron Turner in the Democratic Primary for state senate in the 23rd district. The Bridgeport Education Association issued a statement this weekend and union president Gary Peluchette said Turner supports public schools, attended city schools and sought the union’s endorsement. Turner is challenging school board member Dennis Bradley, the party-endorsed candidate. “Bradley never sought our support and …
https://www.ctpost.com/local/article/Teacher-s-union-supports-Turner-for-state-13134805.php
Ho many members of the teachers union vote in Bridgeport or Stratford? Not so sure that they will have any impact at all. But congratulations to Aaron. Is that Dennis Bradley did not seek their endorsement? Personally , I think the teachers union needs to disappear and teachers need to get a yearly review and write-ups like any other business.
uh, Steve, teachers DO get an annual review EVERY YEAR. and teachers have to take continuing education credits in order to keep their teaching certification ie their teaching license. too bad that can’t be said for a lot of the working population
lisawhite, I know very well the criteria for teachers. I know that just by having an advanced degree you get a raise and that has nothing to do with performance. Wouldn’t that be amazing, your skills suck at your job but if you take extra classes you get a raise to buy that house or car you have been hoping for. The union needs to go and HR needs to be beefed up. Enjoying the schedule of a teacher should not be a criteria for a career , performance and dedication should be. The unions protect that those that need to go!
There 109 BEA/CEA “households’ in the 23rd District. There are multiple voters in the vast majority of these “households”. They are all being contacted to get out to vote for Aaron Turner.
NO politician’s past has been more chronicled than Joe Ganim’s. It’s public knowledge. He’s handcuffed. He can do no wrong. Conclusion: I’d rather laugh with the sinners than cry with the saints.
What’s good for Ganim is good for Bridgeport and that’s what matters, right?
Joe does what’s good for Joe. During Joe’s first term in office was during one of the county’s largest economic booms, albeit a “bubble” . All we got out of this was a strip mall with a Bob’s furniture store and Dunkin Donuts.
I love this video supporting Aaron Turner featuring Ed Gomes!
It is understated but effective.
What high ranking Ganim appointee got caught having an affair with a 25 year old city hall employee? When his wife found out he took a quick trip to Ireland. In case no one knows it is illegal for a person in authority to have an affair with an underling
G**damn it you are supposed to sleep UP!
Do you mean Danny Roach 🙂
I know this is a Bridgeport Democrat race but like in 2012 when this seat had 3 democrats going at it Ayala, Gomes and Newton and they all received CEP funding. Stratford Republicans put up Caz Mizera to face the Democrat winner. Caz raised the $15,000 necessary and received $91,000 in CEP funding to face Ayala who got the same funding for 2012.
Mizera got beat 19,842 to 1,815. Caz lost his own hometown Stratford 2,189 to 310.
But he did score the $91,000 in CEP funding that year.
And the local paper reported:
https://www.stratfordstar.com/1071/stratfords-election-results-by-the-numbers/
One of the Republicans at the headquarters on election night took his loss with a smile and a laugh. Caz Mizera was running against Democrat Andres Ayala for the 23rd Senate District. The seat primarily serves Bridgeport with a small section dipping into Stratford.
“You know what, I don’t know what my numbers are and I don’t even care,” Mizera announced to the crowd with a laugh.
The stuff that Caz spent the CEP money on 2012 was laughable but it was free and no one questions it.
So here we are 2018 the 23rd seat is wide open and there is more CEP available this year.
Caz raised $15k in 3 days to go against Rodriguez who has no money. Caz got $39,000 in CEP primary funds on top of the $15k he raised on his own why does he need more? what will he spend on? If he wins he can get another $95,000 in free money to run against the Democrat in a race he has no chance of winning.
I think besides vote totals it should be reported how candidates spend the CEP money they get. It’s good indication of the type of person they.
Caz has run for 3 races where he received CEP funding.
2010 for State Rep, 2012 State Senate and 2018 State Senate. All 3 times his Treasurer was Lou Decilio the Stratford RTC Chairman and full time Registrar of Voters and the subject of an SEEC complaint 2017-087:
http://stratfordtaxpayersforbettergovernment.blogspot.com/2017/12/state-elections-enforcement-commission.html
On top of running for State Senate this year Caz is also the Treasurer for a John Carlson who is running for State Rep in New Haven:
https://seec.ct.gov/eCrisReporting/pdfviewer.aspx/noscan.pdf/SEEC1A_11821_201806081056.PDF
Can Caz be focused enough to run for Senator of the 23rd and work on a New Haven campaign?
Kenny, sounds like Caz has a good thing going,he’s not breaking any laws,.
Maybe you should do it too big returns from a state program with minimal effort you can laugh all the way to the bank.
Kenny, so you are suggesting that Mr Mizera doesn’t really want to win, he just runs to get the money?
*** ZZZZzzz….***
LOL! I love pissing off the corrupt DTC. Stallworth and Bradley are working hand in hand. Their people dropped their lit on every door on my street and included a really bad photocopy of the hit piece Ralph Ford made against me in 2016. Nowhere does it say “paid for by…” which is a violation of state law.
I have 6 complaints to submit on AB fraud and a massive complaint against Dennis and now I have to add Stallworth.
Here I come…
How did the lawsuit work for you the first time that abhorrent piece of literature came out?
Maria, I know you love the “understated video by Ed Gomes. I must admit it started off as a sophisticated piece that went into mudslinging. What I also heard that Ed was doing nothing while it was Aaron doing the work. Nice for an elected official to admit that. Now, I was at the P.T Barnum reunion when all of the candidates met the crowd. It was only Ed Gomes speaking for Aaron and trying to engage in corruption allegations against Bradley. People were actually turning their head away.
I commend Dennis Bradley for taking the high road and never stooping to the level that the Turner camp has taken. I am certain that Aaron would not do that if it were his choice. He has been ill advised. Whomever is passing out that Maria Pereirra lit, I am certain it is not Charlie Stallworth or Dennis Bradley. I can also say that Stallworth has never had bad words about Shante Hanks. It is sad when you like all candidates and you witness such nasty comments by their underlings. Ed Gomes is a disappointment.
Steve, will you be the one to bailout Dennis.
*** Vengeance is yours, no? *** Or is “Politics” your stress-outlet? ***
And there goes the city employee who is an absolute COWARD!
This cowards are so scare to make a stand and talk smack while hiding who they are, punk cowards.
I am not a City employee. She just can’t RESTRAIN herself. Pun inteded. Poor Mr. Turner. Nice guy, but chooses the wrong mouth to support him. It will be his downfall on the 14th.
Hey Coward, I see that Tony Barr is Dennis Bradley mouth piece, you remember Tony Barr, the ex-felon who threatened Mayor Ganim who had to take out a protective order against Barr Bradley mouth piece. Don’t be scare stand-up and be proud of what you write so that your mother and father, family and friends can be proud of you but you are a COWARD and you and Tony Barr are the type of individuals that supports Bradley who never attended a Bridgeport school in his life and now he’s on the Board Of Education with no connection or experience.
I am not a fan of Dennis Bradley either. He will be a shark in the Senate though and he will do good for Bridgeport.
I thought members of our delegation were meant to listen to the people, see that their needs are met at the State level as well as funding. and that they “bring home some bacon” for local consumption. Have you ever seen a shark move through bacon? They attack it, meet their own needs and continue shredding the remains. Do they ever return home with anything of substance, IN THE CITY? Time will tell.
*** There’s many other bloggers on OIB that use blog-handles instead of their real names. I don’t believe that makes them cowards unless their pitching lies & negative views, no? ***
C’MON MAN, look we all know who you are, you have serve the city, the state and the military in fact when ever we see each other we stop and talk. For a while Andy Fardy was town committee but he eventually he just use his own name. There are a number of bloggers on OIB who don’t use there real name but other people on OIB know who they are. I think one blogger is a want-a-be-Russian troller, Owen.
Nah Mojo, that does make them cowards where the can say what they want about people and hide behind the cloak of anonymity and inscrutability. Everyone should stand behind what they say, good, bad or indifferent.
*** Opinions are just that, opinions! Though I do understand your feelings on the subject @ hand, I still disagree. A name given on a blog web-site may sound like a real person but maybe just a cover aswell. “One never knows do one”? I like my handle (Mojo) & many know who I really am. However I understand especially now in “2018”, where “hate” in general is at an all time high & fueled by “45”s so called political policies & totally ignored by many in the Republican Party,(local & federal levels) like Rep. Paul Ryan & Sen. Mitch McConnell. *** VOTE, YOUR LIFE MAY DEPEND ON IT. ***