Smart Captures Clerk Endorsement

This conversation should begin and end with the fact that Sergio had over 30 foster children. If we are going to pay someone almost 50k a year for a ceremonial position we might as well pay the guy that is going to turn around and spend it on the kids that need the most help.

This has been a crazy election season and there are a lot of complicated choices for us to make, but Sergio for city clerk isn't one of them.

It's insane that we even have this 100% patronage position. The deputy clerk and office staff do all the work. This is just paying someone to not be there.

The fact that anyone is supporting anyone else for this job without OVERHAULING it completely is ridiculous.

This is borderline criminal use of taxpayer dollars.

This is why we must get rid of these Town Committee's.The genius of the Town Committee's is to create the illusion of political choice in elections.Those that vote seem incapable of understanding this.By keeping people focused on rooting for one team or the other,the behind the scenes rulers ensure their invisibility and power.Illusion creates the delusion of Americans that voting in elections will deliver political reforms, despite a long history of politicians lying in campaigns about reforms, new directions and bold new policies.The rulers need power shifting between the teams to maintain popular trust in the political system. Voting manifests that trust—as if changing people will fix the system.It doesn't. So voters become co-conspirators in the grand political criminal conspiracy. Those who vote for Democrats or Republicans perpetuate the corrupt, dishonest and elitist plutocracy that preferentially serves the interests of the Upper Class and a multitude of special interests some aligned with the Republicans and some with the Democrats.We must get rid of town Committee's Now and go to a system where the people pick the people who they want to run.

This office needs a strong leader who pays attention to detail and is committed to transparency.

The existing staff may do a good job, but the Clerk's office is supposed to be the library of our democracy, and unfortunately, it's barely in the 20th century, let alone the 21st. The access to information, including campaign finance information that folks on this site love to analyze, is poorly organized and barely usable.

Michael Smart is the guy who does the Board of Aldermen's grunt jobs. He chairs the Tax Abatement Committee, and created for the first time a transparent, fair, consistent process and standards for deciding how low-income housing gets abatements.

It was Michael, above everyone else on the Board, who drove the process of taking the streets, sidewalks and tree trimming away from the Mayor's patronage operation and helped create a data-driven transparent process for fixing streets and trimming trees.

Sergio's a terrific guy, but it's Michael who has demonstrated that by taking on tough, thankless jobs requiring attention to detail and a commitment to transparent government that he's the best candidate for the job.

@Curious. I think you're just wrong here. This is a vital office. Its staff works very hard, but it's actually the do-nothing leadership of a do-nothing Clerk that gives a false impression of a do-nothing job. In fact, as someone who uses data from the Clerk's office frequently, I can say that an effective, committed leader like Mike can dramatically improve the public's access to information and therefor the quality of our democracy.

Mike has the integrity and commitment to open government necessary to turn this office around.

Sergio is a great guy and has done great work as an alderman and with children in the community. But I think Mike has demonstrated, with his years on the Board, that he is not afraid to take on some of the most arduous and unglamorous work. He chairs the tax abatement committee, which rarely, if ever gets press, helping residents in need navigate the tax collection process. He's taken on a disrespectful tax assessor - leading to his resignation. He has also led a very open, transparent and highly participatory Charter Revision process - one that will likely result in voters weighing in on, among other things, moving to a hybrid Board of Education.

With his commitment to transparency, community engagement and public service, Mike will make a great City Town Clerk!

In all the times I have used the City Clerk's Office, I have never seen Ron Smith, the current Office Holder. However, I have always been properly serviced by the department.

Deputy Clerk Sally Brown deserves a raise, and the Sherriff's position needs to be eliminated.

Knowing all three candidates, all three having different opinions of what government is about, what service to the public is about, and specifically each one of their personal opinion of what they believe is fair compensation for work they may or may not do, while holding public office, it appears the DTC selected the right person. Michael has always given more than anyone would expect from an alderman, as a matter of fact there seems to have been no limit as to the amount of time and good effort he puts in to satisfy the calls for help from his constituents and those in need of tax abatement.

I can only hope he is elected, as he is a taxpayer' dream. He always gives more than anyone could expect, to serve the people of New Haven.

Good Luck Mike.

Mike Smart once had promise. Howevr, he threw it all away when e decided that he would rather be delivered by a corrupt democratic party and tge suburban led union leadership, than to work to be free of such bad influences. Anyone in the office who looses their job if he is elected already has grounds to sue because he said, publicly, that te all-black staff needs to have "more diversity." someone could claim racial discriminaton.

Good luck doing the bidding of the suburban led union leadership that will work hard to put you in office. I just wish that black men in this city would how te guts to stand up and not just be lap dogs. No matter Wharton your thoughts about Carolina, he has the courage to be independent of the political establishment.

@ Accountability...

How much $$ do you think a qualified person in this position should earn? Right now as it stands, it's $45,000 for half time.

Do you think this position deserves a $90,000 full-time salary? That's 50% more than the average for a city our size.

Where's the job description? Why is this an elected office instead of a job that you have to really apply for and be qualified for?

Where's the ACCOUNTABILITY in that?