Dealing from the top of the deck
Mark Boughton’s nine terms as mayor of Danbury have not been without controversy
For Danbury Mayor Mark Boughton, the third time might be the charm.
A moderate Republican in a state of more than 446,000 registered Republicans, the nine- term mayor won the party nomination for governor in May.
While other and lesser- known Republican candidates have been attacking each other, Boughton has generally kept to a strategy of running from the strength of his assured top spot on the primary ballot.
But after unsuccessful runs for lieutenant governor in 2010 and governor in 2014, this is likely the last chance for
the now- 54- year- old mayor to ride Democratic Gov. Dannel P. Malloy’s negative approval ratings right to the Governor’s Residence.
Unlike some of his competitors, Boughton has a long record of public service. It hasn’t been without controversy, including a 2006 roundup of 11 immigrant Danbury workers that led to a massive protest at City Hall and a $ 400,000 legal settlement paid by the city.
At the time, city police were cooperating with Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers.
“I think that we achieved sort of a balance, if you will, here in Danbury,” Boughton said in a recent interview. “Everybody knows that I can’t condone somebody who comes to the country illegally. And I won’t do things like become a sanctuary city because I think that is part of condoning an illegal act. But having said all that, my job is to make sure I get 11,000 kids to school every morning and make sure that police officers are keeping the community safe and make sure the potholes get filled.”
He estimates there are about 6,000 to 7,000 undocumented immigrants in the city.
Pension reform
Like his four opponents, Boughton has been paying some amount of attention to the conservative base of the approximately 150,000 GOP voters expected to turn out for the primary. He wants to eliminate the state’s personal income tax within 10 years.
He gives President Donald Trump high marks, but in a heavily Democratic city of 84,000, Boughton is seen as a more pragmatic local leader who has never missed a meeting of the City Council.
While some of his rivals have threatened to take unions to court to attack the state’s unfunded pension liabilities, Boughton, a former unionized school teacher, has vowed to work with public employee bargaining units to further revamp retirement and benefit packages.
In 2012, Boughton succeeded in changing retirement programs for most new city hires, transitioning from traditional, but more expensive, defined- benefit plans, to 401( K) accounts.
Rob Forbes, a captain in the local Fire Department who is president of the 106member Danbury Professional Firefighters Local 808, said that a recent contract extension went very smoothly. While police and fire retained their retirement programs, union members now have to work 30 years, while before, the threshold was 27 years, Forbes said.
“We actually have a pretty good relationship with the mayor,” said Forbes, a 19- year member of the department.
Staying close to home
Boughton, the son of a former Danbury mayor, graduated from Danbury High School in 1982. He graduated from Central Connecticut State University and then earned a master’s degree from Western Connecticut State University.
He served six years in the United States Army Reserve, reaching the rank of sergeant. In 1987, he began teaching at Danbury High School, and he has maintained a teacher’s rapport with students through his active Twitter postings. He tweets about TV watching ( NASCAR and “The Walking Dead”) and, in wintertime, teases kids about snow days.
He was elected to the state House of Representatives in 1998. In 2001, during his second two- year term, he was elected mayor.
He has long had higher ambitions. In 2010, Boughton came up short in a run for governor, but aligned himself as the running mate of then- Lt. Gov. Michael Fedele, of Stamford. In a twist of state election balloting, Fedele lost the primary, while Boughton won and became the running mate of Greenwich millionaire Tom Foley, who was defeated in the general election by Malloy. In 2014, Boughton abandoned a run for governor in June, after not raising enough money to continue.
Health issues
Boughton admits his brush with a benign brain tumor last year had a deep effect on him. But it has also made him more determined. Tim Herbst, the former Trumbull first selectman who also is running in the Aug. 14 primary, has made some not- so- oblique references to Boughton’s possible health issues.
“I’ve been through a lot of challenges,” Boughton admits. “People said when I got in the race, ‘ Oh he can’t raise the money,’ so that was the first thing. So obviously we completed that task, and then they said ‘ He’ll never win the convention,’ so we win the convention. I see us as the little engine that could politically.”
Between campaigning and running city government, he’s out nearly every night.
“I don’t think anyone can doubt my stamina and my work ethic,” Boughton said. He has also fielded some criticism from newcomer David Stemerman, who avoided the GOP convention and collected signatures to get on the primary ballot, and has tried to label the mayor as a career politician.
“Anybody on the ticket is an insider, at this point,” Boughton said.
Without naming names, Boughton dismisses Stemerman, a former hedge- fund executive from Greenwich, and Bob Stefanowski, of Madison, a former businessman, both of whom are self- funding their campaigns.
“The party has gone down that path a number of times,” Boughton said. “’ Let’s nominate the rich guy because we don’t have to do any work. We don’t have to raise any money. But the reality is that politics is hard work, and you have to raise money, and you’ve got to build connections with people, and you have to buy into your campaign. And I think this is a unique opportunity this year to win with somebody who didn’t show up with a checkbook, but who earned it through hard work and determination and doing all the things you have to do to win elections.” Next Sunday: Your guide to the Aug. 14 Connecticut primaries