New Haven Register (New Haven, CT)
Endorsed Dems sweep Hamden
HAMDEN — This time, she won.
Two years after losing to incumbent Mayor Curt Balzano Leng, Lauren Garrett prevailed Tuesday in Hamden’s Democratic primary.
Backed by an endorsement from the Democratic Town Committee, she beat both Leng and challenger Peter Cyr in the first threeway mayoral primary in town history.
She must still fend off
two challengers in November — GOP candidate Ron Gambardella and Independent candidate Albert Lotto. But because Hamden leans heavily Democrat, the win puts her on track to become the town’s first female mayor in 20 years.
Garrett won the primary a landside, earning 2,960 votes to Leng’s 1,493 and Cyr’s 853, according to preliminary totals provided by DTC Chairman Sean Grace.
After the win, Garrett said she felt “amazing.”
“I’m so happy for the whole slate and so thankful for all of the volunteers who have put in so much time to raise money, to knock on doors, make phone calls, send text messages...we had such a huge team out today. I’m just so appreciative of them wall,” she said.
Karimah Mickens, also the DTCendorsed town clerk candidate, beat Melinda Saller.
The remaining candidates on Garrett’s slate — for Board of Education and at-large council seats — also swept, earning spots on the November ballot.
Two years ago, the DTC endorsed Leng, and he easily beat Garrett after she petitioned to be on the ballot. But as the make-up of the DTC changed, a rift emerged between party and mayor, who bypassed the endorsement process completely.
This time, he petitioned his way onto the ballot.
But there was one more twist in what already promised to be a contentious election. That was Cyr, another petitioning candidate.
Hamden-raised, the 26-year-old political organizer pitched himself as a fresh face who would bring fresh ideas and be the change the town needed. Since he was not tied to past administrations, he argued, he could approach the budget with a better perspective.
After learning about the results Tuesday, Cyr told Hearst Connecticut Media in a written statement he was proud of he run.
“We kept our campaign positive and focused on the issues. It wasn’t our time just yet, but (I’m) going to keep fighting for the issues that are important,” he said.
Garrett, who previously served on the Legislative Council, has a background in engineering and manages the finances for her family’s real estate business. She ran on a platform of financial reform, telling voters she would bring more transparency and long-term fiscal planning to Hamden.
Meanwhile, Leng ran on a propolice platform, suggesting Garrett would support cuts to the department since she questioned its funding when she was a councilwoman. He also indicated that widespread criticism of his financial record was unfair, contending municipal finances had improved under his watch.
The town’s fund balance, for example, is higher than it has been in years, according to the mayor.
(The state recently ranked Hamden as the most indebted Connecticut town per capita. It also has one of the highest tax rates in the area.)
Leng could not immediately reached Tuesday night.
The candidates’ supporters could be found near the polls Tuesday morning, handing out brochures or coming to cast their ballots.
At the school district’s central office in Whitneyville, Gil Cyr, Peter Cyr’s father, arrived early in the day wearing a T-shirt with his son’s name n it.
When he learned his son would be seeking office, Gil Cyr said, he was happy Peter Cyr wanted to help his town.
Father and son have been knocking on doors day after day, Gil Cyr said.
“That was the best approach for us — to have the residents meet Peter,” he said. “He’s got new energy, he wants to make Hamden better...We feel very good about the way Peter ran his campaign. It was a clean campaign, it was a hardworking campaign.”
As Gil Cyr spoke, he spotted someone he recognized: Mallory Bogart, a Peter Cyr supporter, was leaving the polls after casting her ballot for him.
A lifelong Hamden resident, Bogart said she was more invested in this primary than any other. She like Cyr’s platforms on taxes and addressing gun violence, she said.
Other voters were going a different route.
Adam Matlock said he liked Cyr but was worried about splitting the vote — he did not want Leng to win, and so he voted for Garrett.
He was also interested in smallscale responses to climate change — Garrett’s platform included some.
Ashley Northey was another Row A voter. She moved to town in May and did not feel embedded enough in the community to make her own decision, she said, opting to take the advice of friends.
The Row A candidates also seemed more progressive, she said.
Over at Bear Path Elementary School, Shelia Best and Johnny Best cast their ballots for Leng — albeit with some skepticism
He would not have been their first choice, Johnny Best said, but they liked the other choices less. Concerned about crime, they worried Garrett might vote agaist increasing the police budget.
Though the Bests felt Leng had done “a lot of good,” Shelia Best felt he needed to make himself “more visible and accessible,” and both felt he needed to step up on issues like crime and taxes.
Meanwhile, at the Keefe Community Center, Oscar Bolanos — who unsuccessfully petitioned for a spot on the ballot as a candidate for the third Legislative Council district — was out speaking to voters about his support for Leng.
His kids attend the same school as the mayor’s son, he said, and he trusts Leng to do what is best for the future of Hamden, and for their kids.