Republican Jason Perillo has won the special election for the 113th House district in Shelton, Conn. - the first election in Connecticut that offered Citizens' Election grants to candidates.
Perillo, who won with 64 percent of the vote, earned the distinction of being the first candidate to qualify for the state's election grants and will now be the first Citizens' Election Program participant to be sworn into office. His opponent, Democrat James Orazietti, also participated in the Citizens' Election Program.
Although it will still be several days before the State Elections Enforcement Commission issues a final determination how well the new Citizens' Election Program worked in the special election, SEEC officials have said no major problems have occurred.
After talking with Beth Rotman, director of the Citizens' Election Program, one of the areas that proved to be absolutely essential to the apparent success of the special election was candidate support and education. The Citizens' Election Program is a new program and candidates are used to the old-school campaign finance tactics (fund raisers, ad book contributions, leadership PACs, etc.) instead of the new program procedures (small contributions, in-district contributions, higher level of accountability.) Rotman told me that attorneys at the program worked very closely with both campaigns to help them understand the new law and the program's requirements.
The Citizens' Election Program is going to continue that spirit of education by holding free educational and training sessions about the program. With the legislative elections roughly a year away, this is the perfect opportunity to hear from the people administering the Citizens' Election Program how the program works and what their expectations are.
Here's a list of scheduled sessions. All are held at the Legislative Office Building, located at 300 Capitol Ave. in Hartford (FYI: the Legislative Office Building is right next to the Capitol, connected by footbridge.)
- 7 p.m., October 11, 2007, Hearing Room 1C
- 3 p.m., October 18, 2007, Hearing Room 1C
- 7 p.m., November 15, 2007, Hearing Room 2B
- 3 p.m., November 20, 2007, Hearing Room 1C
For more information or to register for the session date of your choice, call the Citizens' Election Program at (860) 256-2940 or go to their Web site at www.ct.gov/seec.
For years, the major obstacle to people who want to run for office has been the daunting challenge of raising the unimaginable amount of political dollars to wage a competitive campaign. If you weren't politically connected or independently wealthy, public office could never be a consideration for even the most talented and qualified of citizens. The Citizens' Election Program has changed that. Now, running for public office is an option for anyone that can rally public support.
These sessions are going to provide an absolute wealth of information. Anyone who has ever thought of running for office or knows someone who they think should run for office, should attend one of these sessions. It promises to provide a clear picture of a whole new kind of politics.
Also... yesterday, I had a great conversation with Erik Campano, host of WSHU's All Things Considered, about the special election in Shelton. You can listen to it by clicking here.
One more thing... The Brennan Center for Justice's Ciara Torres-Spelliscy and Bethany Foster wrote a great op-ed in the Connecticut Post about the special election in Shelton.
"Don't see a candidate in the field that cares about your issues? Know an effective community leader who is just not willing to beg friends and associates for campaign cash? Now average Connecticut citizens can run for office by appealing to voters, not big donors. Talk to your local representatives and other leaders about accepting public financing for the 2008 General Assembly elections. Or better yet, consider running as a publicly funded candidate yourself. " ("Public financing of campaigns off to a great start," The Connecticut Post, Tuesday, Oct. 9, 2007) 
