Overflow Crowd Packs DTC Headquarters Saturday
Enthusiasm, energy and commitment filled New Canaan DTC headquarters Saturday afternoon as town Democrats came together to meet and celebrate its slate of candidates running in the upcoming election. It was also an opportunity to sign up for phone banking, door knocking and postcard writing, all key elements in getting out the vote, especially when polls are so tight.
DTC Chair Christina Fagerstal welcomed attendees, and when introducing Assembly candidate Jason Bennett, Lt. Gov. Susan Bysiewicz reminded the crowd how important it was to strengthen Democratic representation in the state senate and assembly. As lieutenant governor, she also stands as president of the Senate so she stressed the importance of increasing Democratic representation in the upper chamber, citing Nick Simmons’ campaign for the 36th Senate district, as a key to achieving that.
What the candidates said:
Congressman Jim Himes, 4th District, ranking member of the House Intelligence Committee, urged attendees to participate and remarked about the challenges of serving in a body with hard-right members, such as Marjorie Taylor Greene and Matt Gaetz. Currently, Republicans hold a slim majority of seats in the House, but if Democrats reversed that, it would be more difficult for Republicans to pass bills members of that party favors, such as restrictions on women’s reproductive freedom, the right to choose.
Jason Bennett, who’s running against incumbent Republican Tom O’Dea in the 125th District, greeted attendees, described his career as a technology entrepreneur and spoke about the reasons he’s running. As the father of three young daughters, Jason is very focused on securing their future and says he prioritizes maintaining excellence in schools, supporting the environment and defending reproductive rights as three of his key issues.
Incumbent Rep. Lucy Dathan, 142nd Assembly District, commended Bennett for his decision to run and pointed to a list of accomplishments achieved by Democrats in the last session, listing $160 million in investments for education, and nearly $22 million in early childcare, while retaining recent tax cuts. Savet Constantine, running for the 42nd Assembly district, also met with attendees.