Tuesday nights announcement that Wolcott Police Chief Neil O'Leary is resigning, effective January 29, has sent ripples throughout the political circles in the city of Waterbury.
As was mentioned in the article, the conventional wisdom is that Chief O'Leary will announce his candidacy for Mayor of Waterbury sometime in February. Any announcement will have to wait until then, due to federal laws that prevent law enforcement officials from actively campaigning.
If the conventional wisdom holds, Chief O'Leary will be the second Democrat to throw his hat into the ring for the 2011 election cycle. He will be joining former Board of Aldermen President J Paul Vance Jr, who declared his candidacy back in December.
This would set up a very interesting situation for Waterbury Democrats this summer. A primary campaign between Vance and O'Leary would be guaranteed, and the primary could turn into a three way contest if Mayor Jarjura decides to seek a sixth term.
A three way primary within the Democratic party would be extremely intense and could quite possibly turn ugly. Whoever came out on top would either be severly damaged politically, or would be so strong that a victory in November would be almost certain. If the primary turns and stays nasty, Waterbury may experience even lower voter turnout in November as supporters of the two vanquished Democrats stay home.
I must admit that I am hoping that the primary campaign that would develop (if the conventional wisdom is correct) remains focused on the issues, and does not sink into personal attacks. The 20% voter turnout in the 2009 primary was apalling, and the City of Waterbury is in serious trouble when that many registered voters stop caring.
This is not the first time that I have mentioned the dropping voter turnout in Waterbury, and I feel this will become an extremely important issue as the 2011 election draws closer.
Moving down from the Democratic line, things are still quiet. There has been no public discussion yet regarding potential candidates on either the Republican or Independent Party lines. However, I do not think this silence is any reason for concern. We've just wrapped up the 2010 elections, and the 2011 elections are still over 300 days away. There is still plenty of time for things to change, and I'm sure that things will change.
It is obvious, though, that the municipal election campaign has started. It's going to be an interesting summer.
1 comment:
The 20% turnout was a direct reflection on the choices in that race.
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