Shelton Mayor Mark A. Lauretti, a Republican, beat two challengers in Tuesday’s election to secure his 10th term in office.
Lauretti received 6,105 votes, or 53.9 percent of the votes cast.
Democratic challenger Chris Jones received 4,641 votes, or 41 percent of the votes cast, and Citizens United candidate Mark Widomski received 572 votes, or about 5 percent of the votes cast.
To view the election results click here.
“There are more people in Shelton that recognize the value of what’s going on in Shelton than those who do not,” Lauretti said in his acceptance speech.
Lauretti said he was unjustly attacked on a regular basis during the campaign, and called the campaign one about the “personalities of the people,” rather than “the valid issues of our city.”
He pledged to help Shelton survive the economic downturn by continuing his plans for downtown and the Riverwalk area.
“In the next five to seven years, people will be in awe of what they see in the downtown,” Lauretti said. “We’re already the corporate envy of Connecticut.”
Jones Concedes
Jones, the Democratic challenger for Mayor, had run a campaign questioning the transparency of Lauretti’s administration.
He said despite his loss, he would continue to keep the heat on city government.
“We’ll wait and see what’s in the future,” Jones said. “There’s a lot of interesting things going on here in Shelton. There is a federal trial going on, which has a lot to do with what goes on here in Shelton over the next few months.”
Botti faces charges he structured deposits and lied to IRS agents about how much cash he had on hand. In a second pending trial, Botti will face charges of corruption and allegedly bribing a public official.
While Lauretti has not been charged with a crime and has not been officially named as that public official, news reports and Botti’s attorney have identified him as such.
Lauretti’s opponents have used that case to depict a “cloud of corruption” hanging over the city — something Lauretti brushes off, as he denies any part in the case.
“This was not a campaign based on the issues of the city,” Lauretti said. “When you can’t get your opponents to debate you, that should be a red flag.”
Citizens United Fails To Land Any Seats
Citizens United Candidate Widomwski also conceded.
Widomski said he was pleased with his party’s ability to get the message out to voters.
The Citizens United party ran a slate that included Widomski and candidates for the Board of Aldermen, Board of Education, Board of Apportionment and Taxation and the Planning and Zoning Commission.
None of the candidates were elected.
Widomski rejected the notion that a third candidate on the mayoral ticket affected the outcome of the race, calling Lauretti’s win a “resounding victory.”
“We gave the voters another option and they made their choice,” Widomski said. “And obviously they wanted to keep everything status quo.”
Widomski said his slate had not discussed whether to run again in two years.
He said he wasn’t sure what to expect in terms of results.
“Everybody goes into an election hoping to win, obviously,” Widmoski said. “The voters of Shelton had other ideas, I guess.”
Lauretti for Governor?
Lauretti said he plans to run for office at least one more time — but he didn’t specify which office that might be.
“I’ve got all my options open,” Lauretti said. “And (governor) is certainly a consideration.”
Board of Aldermen Stays The Same
Lauretti will have some familiar company on the Board of Aldermen over the next two years.
The board will keep the same political make-up as before: seven Republicans and one Democrat.
Only one new member — Noreen McGorty — will join the board. McGorty, a Republican, will replace Ward 4 Alderman Kenneth Olin, who opted not to run for another term.
The lone Democrat remains John “Jack” Finn, a First Ward alderman who received the most votes in his ward.
The other incumbents re-elected to the Board of Aldermen are: Anthony Simonetti in the First Ward, Stanley Kudej and Eric McPherson in the Second Ward, John Anglace and Lynn Farrell in the Third Ward and John Papa in the Fourth Ward.
Upset on the Board of Education
The Board of Education was the race to watch this year, and the election results tipped the balance toward the Democrats instead of the Republicans.
The board requires minority representation, so no more than five members can be from one party.
On the previous board, there were five Republicans and four Democrats.
Now that balance has switched.
And only five of the nine incumbents running for re-election made it back onto the board.
New members include Democrats Michael Pacowta and Kate Kutash and Republicans John “Jay” Francino-Quinn and Kathleen T. Yolish.
The two new Republican candidates had petitioned to get on the ballot, after the Republican party decided to only run five candidates this election.
The returning members of the board are Democrats Timothy Walsh, III, Arlene Liscinsky and Paula Ellis and Republicans Win Oppel and Thomas Minotti.
Reporter Aaron Leo contributed to this article.
