Srinivasan gains momentum

The first gubernatorial hopeful in a position to qualify for public campaign financing for 2018 probably isn’t who the most-dialed in prognosticators would have picked from the crowded field of Republicans and Democrats.

Prasad Srinivasan, a fourterm GOP legislator from Glastonbury and a lesserknown quantity elsewhere, said he is just $15,000 shy of raising the required $250,000 to participate in the state’s clean elections program. Individual contributions are capped at $100 under the system, which also requires $225,000 of the total to come from within Connecticut.

Srinivasan said he expects to reach the magic number by the end of August, making him eligible for $1.4 million for a GOP primary that is a year away.

The fundraising pace set by Srinivasan, an allergist who came to John F. Kennedy Airport from his native India in 1975 with “seven dollars and fifty cents in my pocket,” might make for the earliest a gubernatorial candidate has qualified since the program’s inception a decade ago.

“It means a lot to me that people see me as viable and are taking me seriously,” said Srinivasan, 67, who is an assistant Republican leader in the House.

Srinivasan is competing against Republicans and Democrats with wider name recognition, some outright candidates like himself and others still in the exploratory phase of the race.

There is also a quintet of mayors and first selectmen — Danbury Republican Mark Boughton, Bridgeport Democrat Joe Ganim, Shelton Republican Mark Lauretti, Middletown Democrat Dan Drew and Trumbull Republican Tim Herbst.

“Pretty much all of them are from Fairfield County, where you know that’s where the people with deeper pockets are,” Srinivasan said. “Obviously, they’ve run state races before.”

Then there’s Kevin Lembo, the state comptroller; Dave Walker, of Bridgeport, the former U.S. comptroller general; former Consumer Protection Commissioner Jonathan Harris; 2014 secretary of the state candidate Peter Lumaj; former prosecutor Chris Mattei; Westport businessman Steve Obsitnik; and state Sen. Toni Boucher, R-Wilton.

Boughton, a potential third-time candidate for governor, suspended his 2014 bid for the state’s top office when he could not qualify for public financing. As of July 1, he still had about $102,000 to go this time to get to the $250,000.

“Look, this is a marathon. It’s not a sprint,” Boughton said Wednesday. “We know we’ll be qualified. We have a pipeline to $250,000. We have other things to do, run a city as well as the political side to campaigning.”

While most of the gubernatorial candidates have paid fundraisers helping them, some making $6,000 a month, Srinivasan said he has one part-time paid consultant managing his social media accounts and campaign website. Srinivasan’s campaign finance report shows he paid that consultant, Samantha Slade, $2,000 at the end of June.

Srinivasan is keeping the job of campaign manager and fundraiser in the family.

“The boss, my wife,” said Srinivasan, who has been accompanied by his spouse, Kala Prasad Srinivasan, to 65 Republican Town Committee meetings since the start of the year.

She teaches South Indian classical music. They’ve been married for 40 years.

“In the last 39 years we have not been on as many date nights as we have in the past six months,” he said.

Jason Perillo, the House Republican Whip from Shelton, said Srinivasan has demonstrated that he belongs in the conversation for governor.

“It’s sweat equity at this point,” Perillo said. “I think he’s a quality guy, a true gentlemen, very knowledgeable, so it’s no surprise to me that he’s doing well with his fundraising.”

State GOP Chairman J.R. Romano echoed Perillo.

“He’s a hard worker, for sure,” Romano said. “There will certainly be people impressed with his ability to raise money.”

Romano said he expects Srinivasan will have company from multiple Republican qualifiers for public campaign financing. The previous record in one party was two, with Tom Foley and John McKinney each qualifying for the 2014 GOP primary for governor.

“We’re kind of (in) uncharted waters here,” Romano said.