Danbury’s Boughton, set to take new role, gets emotional
DANBURY — The longest-serving mayor in Danbury history held his composure during his last State of the City address until he got to the point of thanking staff and constituents for their support over the last 20 years.
“Danbury and the people of Danbury are always my home,” said Mayor Mark Boughton, lowering his head as tears came into his eyes and his throat tightened. “And I will never forget the things we accomplished together.”
With more difficulty, an emotional Boughton said, “It’s the Danbury difference.”
Boughton’s comments came during his annual State of the City address to the Greater Danbury Chamber of Commerce on the virtual videoconferencing platform Zoom.
It was the first time Boughton spoke publicly following Thursday night’s surprise announcement by Democratic Gov. Ned Lamont that the high-profile Republican had been nominated to be Connecticut’s next tax commissioner, and would step down as the Hat City’s top elected leader.
“Over the last several months, I have been thinking and reflecting about my future and my place in the universe,” said Boughton, who has run three times for governor. “I think it’s important to reach across the aisle and work together for the betterment of Connecticut.”
At a virtual news conference late Friday morning after his speech, Boughton said he decided not to run for an 11th two-year term as mayor about six weeks ago — the same time that Lamont asked Boughton to become the next commissioner of the state Department of Revenue Services.
“When (Lamont) called, I had to think about it, because it’s a big change in what I do,” Boughton told reporters. “But I thought the time was right.”
Boughton, a fiscal conservative who has spent much of his elected career criticizing the state’s taxation policies, led a coalition of cities who sued the state to get their fair share of education money. Boughton proposed during his 2018 run for governor to phase out state income tax over 10 years.
But that is now history, along with Boughton’s online moniker, Mayor Mark.
“This is a different kind of public service,” Boughton said during the news conference. “Right now, I have 90,000 bosses. My (new) job is to implement policy promulgated by the legislature and the governor.”
Boughton took questions from the media about the transition in Danbury City Hall, explaining that longtime GOP City Council President Joe Cavo was preparing to take over as mayor.
“We are in the middle of a pandemic, so I am going to be splitting time between Danbury and the state, at least for the first couple of weeks,” said Boughton, whose nomination is expected to be confirmed by the state legislature in early January. “I won’t be in City Hall, but I will be available to consult about economic development projects, and working on the pandemic.”
‘I’ll still be around’
Boughton answered questions from Danbury residents during a noon livestream on Boughton’s Facebook page about what would happen to the man known as Mayor Mark.
During the 35-minute virtual chat, the 56-year-old Boughton made it clear that while he would still live on Main Street in downtown Danbury and still be part of a city where he was born and raised, his presence would be a remnant of what it has been for the last 20 years as one of Connecticut’s leading Republicans.
“I have to be apolitical,” said Boughton, who will oversee an office that collects taxes, conducts audits and measures compliance with state policies. “People can’t come into my office and worry that they won’t be treated fairly because I’m a Republican … I have to be really careful to make sure people know I am objective.”
At a minimum, Boughton’s new posture as a state commissioner means an end to the wit and candor with which Boughton has conducted himself online.
The last day for the Mayor Mark Twitter account with its 40,000 followers likely will be Thursday — the date Boughton plans to “separate myself from employment with the city,” and the date Cavo will be sworn in as the new mayor.
“I will be locking down the Mayor Mark (account) and jumping off a lot of social media,” Boughton told 500 viewers watching live on Facebook. “I’m going to lose followers like crazy — maybe I’ll use my account to say thing like, ‘tax bills are due.’ ”
“How exciting,” cracked Taylor O’Brien, the mayor’s spokesperson.
“It will be riveting,” Boughton played along.
Meanwhile on Friday, Lamont said having an outspoken Republican in his administration would make policy discussions more dynamic.
“Look, I don’t want everybody thinking just like me,” Lamont said. “I like people from the private sector, the public sector, (people from) Hartford, people not from Hartford, Republicans and Democrats — and I find the widest variety of points of discussion around the table make for a better decision.”
The surprise news that Boughton was leaving in the middle of his term 10th term to join a Democratic administration seemed to signal the end of Boughton’s career as an elected leader.
“I don’t think you will see me out in the field in the short term,” Boughton told a reporter earlier on Friday about a fourth run for governor. “I don’t think elected office is in the cards for me in the long run.”
In the end, Boughton said, he had achieved his late mother’s definition of success: to make money doing what you love.
“It’s an honor to be the mayor of a place you grew up in, and spent your whole life in,” Boughton said.