Cosgrove & the Republicans Take Branford Again

First Selectman Jamie Cosgrove and his team swept the election Tuesday night, saying it was an endorsement of their first two years in office. Cosgrove was elected to a second term with 4,285 votes in an easy early win over Democrat Mark Rabinowitz. 

“I thought the last election was the greatest night I had, but this night tops it because we were judged on our record,” Cosgrove said during his acceptance speech.

A wildly enthusiastic crowd cheered Cosgrove at Republican headquarters on South Montowese Street Tuesday night.

The Republicans swept the election, keeping their strong majority on the Representative Town Meeting. (RTM) The icing on the cake was adding the Board of Education to their wins. Here they await the results. Click here to read our earlier story on Election Day. 

Joe Higgins, Jr., current selectman, was re-elected as well, with 3,722 votes, along with the entire Republican team.

In a bit of a twist reminiscent of the last election, the third selectman’s seat will go to former Branford Fire Chief Jack Ahern, running on the Democratic ticket with former Tisko principal Mark Rabinowitz, who was seeking the First Selectman’s seat. Ahern received 3,044 votes to Rabinowitz’s 2,473. These figures include absentee ballots.

Cosgrove took six districts out of seven; District 2, Stony Creek was the sole district won by Rabinowitz.

The make-up of the RTM appears to remain the same, 19 Republicans to 11 Democrats, and all three Republican running for the Board of Education were elected.

Town Attorney Bill Aniskovich, who introduced Cosgrove Tuesday night, told the crowd that this election was even sweeter than the one two years ago. ​“This margin, which is bigger than the margin we had two years ago, is just an affirmation of the incredible work that you have done to make a difference in people’s lives in this town,” Aniskovich said. ​“And I couldn’t be prouder to be associated with all of you, every single one of you. This was a Cosgrove team.”

Aniskovich, the force behind the campaign, said the sweep of Republicans on the Board of Education was remarkable. ​“Probably the most telling sign that we’ve changed the culture here in this town is our sweep of the Board of Ed seats,” Aniskovich said. ​“Those are incredible people who we have helped get on the Board of Ed who are going tot give Mike Krause and his team a real step up while we renovate Walsh and we move this education system forward.”

Aniskovich and Ray Ingraham, the head of the Republican Town Committee, updated the numbers as they came in and then Aniskovich announced them to the crowd. 

“It feels great,” said Cosgrove. ​“It proves our good work paid off.” He added that he considers the win an affirmation of his first two years and will continue the good work.

Cosgrove listed some of the top items on his agenda — the senior center, Walsh Intermediate School renovations, and finding a new location for public works. ​“And yes, we must assure that the approval process for Costco and others remain fair and honest,” he said.

“We just did what we thought would be best for Branford. We just tried to do this the right way,” Cosgrove added. ​“Tonight the voters have said we did a good job.”

Republican Lisa Arpin won re-election as town clerk over Pam Knapp, 3,824 votes to 2,623. Democrat Joanne P. Cleary, who was cross-endorsed for tax collector by the Republicans won a combined 6,611 total votes even with three Democratic districts not reporting.

Republican headquarters was like a big party with everyone cheering as results came in.

One of Cosgrove’s biggest supporters was his daughter, Ava, 11.

Dems Down

Over at Democratic headquarters, the mood was somber. 

This was the first time that Rabinowitz, a popular school principal, made a run for public office. When the results came in, he said he was disappointed. ​“I gave it my all. I gave 150 percent. It is all we can do. You do your best and I gave it my best. Democracy rules,” he said adding the campaign was a ​“great experience.”

Ahern said he was saddened Rabinowitz lost. We all fought the good fight,” he told the Eagle. He said in an interview and later to the room at large that the Democrats need to ​“get our base back” and that he would work hard to rebuild the Democratic party in Branford.

He said he looked forward to becoming the third selectman and intended to speak his mind on the issues. He said he was disappointed by such a ​“low turnout after all. It was like a rainy day and it wasn’t.”

Despite receiving just 99 votes, Jacey Wyatt (pictured), the Independent candidate, was still upbeat. ​“Today was a great day,” she said on BCTV. Wyatt was also running for the RTM and Board of Education.

In an interview, she said, ​“This is how America works….As an independent candidate I knew it was going to be really tough,” She told the Eagle in an interview with the Eagle on BCTV at Democratic headquarters that she plans to join the Democrats and run in some capacity two years from now.

“They have been very open, very welcoming, very much like family. We will work together to see what is going to happen two years from now.”

Talking with the Eagle

At Republican Headquarters the official speeches were brief Tuesday night, but candidates and well-wishers continued to celebrate and discuss the election. Many shared their thoughts with the Eagle.

Joe Higgins, who will continue to serve as second selectman, told the Eagle the vote Tuesday reaffirmed the vote two years ago. ​“The people who made the change last time, liked the change,” Higgins said.

Town Attorney Aniskovich told the Eagle he was very proud of the first selectman and the Republican team. ​“When you’re an incumbent, you run on your record,” he said. ​“I thought we accomplished a lot.”

Lisa Arpin, who won re-election as town clerk, told the Eagle that the re-election of the Cosgrove team ​“talks about the consistency in our party.” She thanked the voters for returning her to a second term. ​“It’s nice to have the reaffirmation that the hard work I’ve done in the first term has been acknowledged,” she said. 

Dennis Flanigan, the moderator of the Representative Town Meeting (RTM), said he appreciates the voters’ confidence in the Republican team. ​“I think our efforts have paid off,” he told the Eagle. ​“It shows the voters are happy and very confident with what we’ve done in the past two years.”

Flanigan said he was the highest vote getter on the RTM, and that he hopes to continue as moderator.

Ray Ingraham told the Eagle that the votes were an ​“endorsement of our incredible candidates” and the coalition that the Republicans built.

Michael Krause, who chairs the Board of Education, told the Eagle, ​“I’m excited to continue the work the board has done, and to be working with the new people and continue to move our district forward.”
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