New Haven Republican Hangs In There

What's this article? A refreshing opportunity to present the slightest glimmer of the smallest possibility of balance to the ponderous Democratic tax and spend combine grinding up Yankee values of self-reliance and ingenuity Connecticut was famous for?!

Nope. I saw it going downhill when it feebly attempted to present border security as being anti-immigration.

I support shoplifters being arrested. (Undocumented customers?) Does that mean I don't support shopping?

Using a loophole to cook the votes and conduct city policy is a violation of the spirit of both democracy and open government rules.This is what one party rules get you. Closed door, secret decisions where pro forma fake public hearings mean nothing. It's just a checked box and BOA meetings are cooked results. It's all BS.

If you want to get an idea of the real number of voting Republicans in New Haven proper, go to the State and National Election Results!!!!

5477 Voted for Trump
5182 Voted for Stefanowski

Since we only have 2508 Registered Republicans in New Haven, some are obviously hiding behind the label 'Independent'

New Haven's closed door government is enabled not only by the caucus exception, but by the city's single representative districting. In other towns, where members are elected at-large or with multiple member districts, state law requires minority representation. While decisions may be made in the majority's caucus, there is at least minority to question town officials and present alternative courses of action. For example, on the standard three member Board of Selectmen, two will be of the majority party, and one of the minority.
BTW, I am pretty sure that while both Haci & Steve Winter were not party endorsed, and therefore ran as independents, neither is unaffiliated, rather, both are registered Democrats. Haci has been disappointing in kow-towing to the machine, while Winter has shown some independence (along with Roth and Festa).

In terms of Mayoral challenges, the last 'robust' race was Destefano vs. Schiavonne (2001), where 4465 voted for the Republican.

1644,

Totally agree that Winters, Festa, and Roth are the independent voices on the board.
They also give hope for taking back the other 27 seats.....

If Hacy remains unchallenged, expect a lackluster turnout in Ward 1 this November.

When he ran unopposed in 2017, 288 people turned out to vote, compared to 841 when Elicker ran in 2013 (when there was a contentious battle for the seat between Eidelson & Nayak) .

Also important to note that Elicker walked away from Ward 1 606 votes ahead of Harp in 2013.
If fact, Elicker walked out of Ward 1 with more 'net votes' than any other ward!

This is a prime example about why alder challenges matter!!

Ward 1 is also the most 'fickle' in terms of 'coming out' to vote -- Over the past 30 years, Ward 1 Turnout has ranged from a high of 841 in 2013 to a low of 108 in 2007.

Well, that's it for today's Fun Voting Facts!!!!!

For government to function properly the country needs Democrats, Republicans, Green Party representatives, and any other political groups. Both the country as a whole and State and local governments produce bad results when all sides are not represented. New Haven and Connecticut are on a decline because they only have one party represented. I was glad to see the Democrats retake the House so Congress has opposing views to deal with between the House and the Senate. When either party has all the power, legislation is enacted without the support of bi-partisanship that is often doomed to fail, such as Obamacare. Everyone supports heath care reform but the means and methods have to take into account points from all sides. The Republicans with their environmental agenda got away with harmful laws and rules when they had all of Congress before this year. 51 percent means 49 percent aren't happy. Connecticut and New Haven sorely need bipartisanship, and something that seems to be lost forever, compromise.

Many of us in the New Haven Republican Party do not support the Trump Administration. The problem is that no one speaks out to take the Party back from this embarrassment. "Dump Trump" should be our slogan, and mission, as we head toward the 2020 elections.

1644, at-large districts work well for relatively homogeneous municipalities where the parties have more or less equal shares of the voters. New Haven is far from homogeneous, having very distinct neighborhoods. If the legislative body had more than eight seats, one-third of them would have to minority party members, in a city where more than 85% of the vote was Democrat in the election. Finally, although this is not your motivation, moving to an at-large or multi-member system would likely result in a significant reduction in the share of members who are POC. I'm sure Jonathan Wharton is not the only New Haven Republican who is a POC. But I doubt there are many, in a city that is about two-thirds POC.

Local man watches local government in action; is prompted to support state kidnapping, voter disenfranchisement, handouts to predatory lending services, protections for campus rapists, police violence against people of color, mining and oil drilling in national parks, offshore drilling, tearing families apart through deportation, undermining social safety nets with tax cuts for the wealthy, eliminating workers' rights to union representation, etc....

Makes sense!

Kevin;
(1) At-large elections can leave minority voters without representation. In New Haven, "people of color" are a majority, and whites a minority, so I wouldn't expect any diminution of representation by "people of color". Empirical, the dominance of Harp and Smart in their at-large elections show that at-large elections are not barriers to "people of color" in New Haven.
(2.) The minority that is not represented, and has no voice in government, is the 15% that is not Democrat. Those folks have zero voice in government. One third isn't enough to actually wield power, but it is enough to present an alternative program, and to critique the actions of the majority.
(3.) As an alternative to at-large presentation, one can have multi-member districts. Branford has a 30 member RTM with 7 districts, each having three or more representatives, so one or more members from each district must be of a different party than the majority. The seven districts allow distinct neighborhoods neighborhood representation, so coalitions will shift based on neighborhood as well as party lines. New Haven could either reduce the number of wards, or increase the size of the BoA to get multi-member districts. Westport has a 100 member RTM, and Greenwich something like 250 in twelve districts.
(4) The minority represented would not necessarily be Republican. I wouldn't be shocked in New Haven if the minority were CPUSA.

As a Hamden Republican and candidate, I can understand John's frustration. However, I have found that by addressing the common issues that Democrats, Republicans, Progressives and Independents find important, it is much easier to start dialogue that fosters meaningful debate, questions and answers that truly help the citizens that "politicians" are supposedly trying to get elected to serve. When the Party becomes more important than the constituents, as I believe has been happening for decades, there results in only division, a stagnation of solutions and a perpetual cycle that ultimately stifles the guidance to social and economic growth that voters expect from their elected leaders.

Jay Kaye
Hamden, CT

MAYORAL CANDIDATE RECAP

Over the past 30 years, 40 concerned citizens have 'thrown their hat in the ring' in the Quest for Mayor.

7 of them were Republican -- but we haven't an Elephant in the Ring since Richter Elser in 2007.

15 have Petitioned their Way onto the Ballot.
The most in any one race was in 1997, when 4 ran against Destefano. (Savage, Piscatono, Sumner,&Cogdell;)

3 were Green (Borenstein(x2) & Ferrucci), but that party has sailed, 2005 being the last time they put forth a candidate.

1 was 'officially' Guilty'. (Ferrucci) (2 were Guilty write-ins: Saunders, Blatteau)

and 1 Working Family --- Ganong!!! During this past Governor's Election, 1032 people cast ballots for Lamont as WF.

13 times the Write-in Ballot has been used -- ten of those times was by Roger Uehlein.

In terms of which candidate 'fared' best, the clear winner is Jonathan Einhorn Jr, who took on Mayor John Daniels in 1991 and received the highest vote total of any challenger.

This scrappy Republican received 12,166 votes (40%), which is more votes than Mayor Harp has ever gotten.

1991 was also the highest voter turnout for a Mayoral Election in the last 30 years.
(28,822 people turned out to vote that year, compared with 11,364 in 2017).

posted by: 1644 on January 18, 2019 2:47pm

New Haven's closed door government is enabled not only by the caucus exception, but by the city's single representative districting. In other towns, where members are elected at-large or with multiple member districts, state law requires minority representation

posted by: missthenighthawks on January 18, 2019 6:02pm

For government to function properly the country needs Democrats, Republicans, Green Party representatives, and any other political groups. Both the country as a whole and State and local governments produce bad results when all sides are not represented.

.All you have to do is Use the system of proportional representation.

How Proportional Representation Elections Work - FairVote

https://www.fairvote.org/how_proportional_representation_elections_work


posted by: 1644 on January 18, 2019 2:47pm


In other towns, where members are elected at-large or with multiple member districts, state law requires minority representation

Correct.In fact that is how The Village of Port Chester, New York now has proportional representation.

In 2009, a historic legal battle over minority voting rights between Port Chester and the Justice Department ended in defeat for the village.In reviewing voting history, a federal judge determined that Hispanics in Port Chester weren't getting a fair chance to elect representatives of their choice.Voting was highly divided along ethnic lines. The minority-supported candidates almost always lost despite an eligible voting population that was one-quarter Latino.
The court also found a pattern of discrimination and racial appeals in past political campaigns.
As a result, the village's old system was ruled to violate part of the federal Voting Rights Act.
The temporary solution? An obscure electoral process known as cumulative voting.
Port Chester became the municipality in New York state history.

Bill: Ward 1 is, of course, the most transient campus, being mostly Yale undergrads here for four years. I had high hopes for Haci, as he challenged the UNITE-HERE employee, and was a gown-robed townie. Unfortunately, It seems he is just angling for good letters of recommendation from Harp et alia, not wanting to rock the boat, or kick against the pricks. Rather than balancing the budget, he is playing with flag designs. As far as voter turnout, he cannot even educate his constituents how to register to vote, causing massive afternoon back-ups at city hall while the Library was largely empty on Election Day. Okay, Haci rant over.

3/5's Port Chester is a good example of how useful a citizenship question would be in determining Voting Rights Act violations. Port Chester does have a lot of folks of Latin American origin, but many, and I suspect most, are not US citizens. If, say, up to 90% of Port Chester's Latin American origin population were aliens, their lack of representation in town government might be less a function of governmental structure and more a function of their ineligibility to vote. Of course, when the Voting Rights Act refers to minorities, it means ethnic minorities, while the guaranteed CT statutory minority representation means political minorities. In any case, while identity politics remains important in New Haven, it's not determinative. The two major mayoral candidates, Harp and Paca, were both black, supported across racial lines, while Winter was able to beat a candidate who reflected his wards ethnic and social make-up by out-working him. My guess is a lot of black voters figured, after the third time he knocked on their door, while he did not look like them, he did care about them and would work hard for them, so gave him a chance and their vote.

3/5's Yes. Port Chester's history is interesting :
https://www.lohud.com/story/news/local/westchester/port-chester/2018/10/03/did-port-chesters-democratic-experiment-work/1459115002/
Port Chester is majority "Hispanic" (although I suspect some Brazilians are counted as "Hispanic").

1644, I'm sure Joelle Fishman was pleased to see your comment re. the CPUSA. But in New Haven, the vast majority of non-Democrats with a party affiliation are Republicans. And nationally, and I believe in New Haven, the vast majority of Republicans are white. If you reserve one-third of the seats in a legislative body (under an at-large or RTM system) for Republicans, it is likely that most if not all of their occupants will be white. You would also be giving Republicans more than twice the number of seats they would gain under proportional representation.

On the other hand, you're right about the lack of representation of Republicans on the BOA. The obvious response is that the Republicans need to organize in the wards where they have the best chances of success.

My sense is that RTM works well in the towns where it currently used. But none of the towns you mentioned has New Haven's racial/ethnic diversity or dominance by a single part in party registration. Even in Greenwich, there is near parity in voter registration (a bit more than 10,000 Democrats, a bit more than 12,000 Republicans).

Re. the citizenship question on the census - the fundamental purpose of a census is getting an accurate count of the people living in an area. As Judge Furman found, adding a citizenship question would result in an undercount.

KM,

In looking at last years Governor's Race, this is what we can tell about Republican Potential:

The two wards with a chance of turning Republican are of course Wards 17 & 18 (The Annex).

In the last gubernatorial race, Ward 18 came the closest of turning with 47% of the vote for Stefanowski.
Ward 17 came in second with 35% Republican support. These are also consistent, high voter turnout wards

Both of these wards behave like a city with 2 parties.

Fairhaven Heights (Wards 11,12,13) are next highest in Republican support -- about 25%

The two wards with the lowest Republican support were Ward 23 (West River -- My Ward), and Ward 21(East Rock/Science Park), which showed about 4.5% Republican Support.

Kevin:
(1) Regarding the census, if we want to elevate its primary purpose, we should eliminate all the extraneous questions about ethnicity, race, etc. A simple number is all we need to make voting districts, which is the constitutional purpose of the census. If we want to worry about whether the right color people are being elected, knowing the citizenship/alienage stautus of everyone is important. My vote would be just count, and stop the social engineering.
(2) Given that, to the extent he had a platform, Paca was to Harp's left, as was Ganong, I think CPUSA has a good a chance as the Republicans in New Haven. Haven't the Greens had more success lately than the Republicans? 3/5's support of violent Puerto Rican independence, in the face of abysmal electoral performances, tell me he is a Leninist who might vote Bolshevik. (Although as a small holder, he might want to rethink that).
(3), Yes, the one third requirement may lead to "over-representation." Proportional representation solves that problem, but is hard without at-large elections. While I don't think ethnic representation matters, I think having representatives grounded in a district ensures that each area of a town has a voice. I doubt skin color makes the folks on Prospect Hill and on the East Shore think alike about the airport. Most of all, proportional representation has no current basis in Connecticut law, while guaranteed minority representation is the default.
(4) Check out Ansonia's history without minority representation. https://valley.newhavenindependent.org/archives/entry/ansonia_looks_to_spread_the_power/

Bill, thanks, sounds reasonable to me.

1644, we agree on proportional representation.

With regard to the census, the 2010 census did not ask a person's ethnicity (it only had ten questions). There was an ancestry question on the 2000 long form, which only went to a sample of residents. In contrast, the census has asked about race since its inception. I've seen no evidence that this question reduces the accuracy of the census. In contrast, there is good evidence, described in Judge Furman's 277-page decision, that adding a citizenship question will reduce the accuracy of the census.

posted by: 1644 on January 20, 2019 3:03pm

3/5's support of violent Puerto Rican independence, in the face of abysmal electoral performances, tell me he is a Leninist who might vote Bolshevik. (Although as a small holder, he might want to rethink that).

I am not a Leninist.

Yes, the one third requirement may lead to "over-representation." Proportional representation solves that problem, but is hard without at-large elections.

There are many systems in Proportional representation that can be used to fit any elections.

Types of PR Systems

Party List Voting

Closed Party List Ballot

Open Party List Ballot

https://www.fairvote.org/how_proportional_representation_elections_work

Most of all, proportional representation has no current basis in Connecticut law, while guaranteed minority representation is the default

The reason for that is the crooked two party system.when charter revision comes up you can fight to have proportional representation put into the charter.Over 90 countries around the world use proportional representation with positive outcomes. You see more collaboration, more transparency, and the most critical part is you see voters' intentions reflected in the legislature.

My bad.You said Yes, the one third requirement may lead to "over-representation." Proportional representation solves that problem, but is hard without at-large elections.

Like I said they are many systems in proportional representation You can use.MMP (Mixed Member Proportional)

https://youtu.be/8Uk44aykGg4

This says it all.

How & Why Other Countries have Ended the 2-Party System

https://youtu.be/MiEt6703L1o

Kevin: Question 8 of the 2010 short form census asked about ethinicity, specifically, if some one was of Hispanic, Latino, or Spanish origin, and then drilled down to national origin. Curiously, the 1940 census regarding Hinu as a race. :)

3/5's: Most of those countries didn't "end" the two party system. New parties evolved to replace when old ones didn't represent significant constituencies. In Canada, the NDP emerged to represent a leftism more extreme than the Liberals did. Other times, as in Quebec, Scotland, Northern Ireland, etc. parties emerged to represent regional or, in multi-national states like the UK, national interests. (The PQ would argue Quebec is a nation (although not a state). In nations with proportional representation, such as Israel, governments tend to be unstable coalitions subject to blackmail from extremists. In other cases like England, the first past the post system means a government can win a strong parliamentary majority with a minority of votes. (If the UK had ranked voting, it might had had numerous SDP/Liberal governments rather than Conservative or Labor). BTW, for practical purposes, Australia has two parties: Labour and the Liberal/National coalition. If we had ranked voting in primaries, we might had a President O'Malley. The original intent of the Electoral College was to arrive at a consensus candidate like O'Malley.

I want to take this opportunity to talk about 'the edges'

The best opportunity to bear witness to that extreme is the 2016 Presidential Election.

497 voted Libertarian.
620 voted Green.

If the Republicans don't put up a candate for Mayor in 2019, the Libertarians should!

1644, the 2010 short form census did ask about Hispanic/Latino/Spanish ancestry. It did not ask about specific ethnicity. Such questions are part of the American Community Survey, which goes out to a sample of residents rather than everyone. https://www.census.gov/history/www/through_the_decades/index_of_questions/2010.html

The Census Bureau has changed its questions on race and ethnicity over time. Questions on Hispanic ethnicity were added in the 1970 long form. The recent trend is to ask a limited number of questions on the decennial census and rely on the ACS to collect detailed information.

posted by: 1644 on January 20, 2019 9:02pm

In nations with proportional representation, such as Israel, governments tend to be unstable coalitions subject to blackmail from extremist.

For real.Under the Two Party system in this nation.The government is unstable.Both parties help shut the government down.Look at gerrymandering which keeps the Two Party system In control.Look at Finland which Parliamentary elections are held every four years with a system of proportional representation in multiple seat constituencies.Finland is a very stable government.

The most stable, successful nations in the world have PR, so why can't we?

https://www.newhavenindependent.org/index.php/archives/entry/john_cirello_GOP/#cmt

With all that said, why in the world did CT pass legislation to basically outlaw proportional representation by throwing CT's electoral votes to whoever gets the popular vote? If CT voters decide they want a Democrat, or a Republican (highly unlikely), or Green Party candidate (even more highly unlikely), why should CT voters be saddled with whoever gets the popular vote? The electoral college protects voters in progressive states like CT to make sure their votes go to a progressive, just like it gives highly rural or densely metropolitan cities a voice reflecting their interests. My interests aren't the same as Maine's or Chicago's or Iowa's. Most CT voters would be appalled to hand over their votes to a Republican candidate just because he or she got 51% of the popular vote. The electoral college has a purpose to make sure all voices are heard, not just New York City's.

Reading all of these detailed analyses of the voting patterns and reasons for, remind me of the serf debating the knight in Monte Python's Holy Grail. One groveling in the mud, the other on horseback. Representative government promulgating by a sword "cast by a watery tart"
Blah blah blah. Find your candidate and vote.

WMACHQ,

I totally agree with the idea of 'find your candidate and vote'. That is one method of 'political engagement'.
New Haven does not have a problem with that, as is evidenced by the turnout at the last Gubernatorial Election.

The other method of 'political engagement' is to actually run for office yourself.
Face it, in New Haven there are a serious lack of 'candidates to actually vote for' on the local level.

Understanding voting patterns and Ward Proclivities are tantamount to making an informed decision about entering the 'political fray'. Well, I guess that's not your 'interest' -- but there is valuable information to be found if you deign to 'look'.

When only 4 Wards out of 30 had Alder Competition in the last Mayoral Election, with abysmal voter turnout, there is a big problem with 'Local Democracy'.

Wanna run?

Hello again,
I was not critical of the "political engagement" of what your espousing. Nor the various processes.
I WAS commenting on the earnest and convoluted punditry of the combined comments by the "usual suspects"
It's always great to read the Comments portion of each story. There is an interesting coalition of ideas, opinions, and humorous anecdotes that manage to surface.
I am very serious about politics, democracy et al.
I just do not like to take myself as seriously as some others.

Bill Saunders.... you sound very confident in your statement
"Since we only have 2508 Registered Republicans in New Haven, some are obviously hiding behind the label 'Independent'"

Some of those republican votes came from Democrats.

WE dont need Republicans just more honest Democrats.

ctddw,

I am sure there were a few turncoats!
Lamont was a terrible candidate!

btw ctddw,

YES, I am confident in my statement.
That is why I used the word 'some'!

Bill Saunders....I didn't question your word "some". I questioned that you thought the other votes were only from Independents and not from Democrats. I guess those are the people that you consider turncoats.

I have lived in New Haven almost 60 years and have always considered myself to be a Democrat and all I have to show for it is getting taxed to death with little services at both a state and local level. At the current rate I won't be able to retire here.

Everyone is trying to be so politically connected (to stroke their egos) they have lost sight of the real goal. The infighting in the city of New Haven is counter productive. The school system is in a shambles. The budget is in a shambles. This is all under Democratic leadership so I guess I am beginning to wonder what is so great about it?!?!?!

Someone made a comment that we don't need Republicans we just need more honest Democrats. What that translates to me is that people are so against Republicans that they have been willing to vote for dishonest Democrats. This is insanity.