Ansonia Republican candidates for office.
ANSONIA — Mayor David Cassetti’s re-election campaign raised $8,000 from individuals between July 1 and Sept. 30, according to a campaign finance disclosure statement filed in the Town Clerk’s Office Tuesday (Oct. 12).
“Cassetti for Mayor 2021” had $740 on hand at the start of the reporting period, bringing the complete total to $8,740 raised, if looking at column A of the disclosure form. The campaign spent $8,151.29, leaving it with $588.71 as of Sept. 30, the latest date for which information is available.
The Ansonia Republican Town Committee submitted paperwork showing it raised $3,950 in the same time period.
Click here for a story on how fundraising is going with city Democrats.
Election Day is Tuesday, Nov. 2. Another round of campaign financial disclosures is required a week before the election.
The political races in Ansonia are unusual this year in that the Democrats opted not to run a candidate against Republican Mayor David Cassetti, who is running for his fifth, two-year term. The Ansonia GOP message has been to support the Republican “row B,” aka “Team Cassetti,” across the ballot.
“The mayor and the RTC (Republican Town Committee) are hitting all the notes that they intend to hit. They’ve been out there early with everything from mailers to yard signs to their online. In terms of those notes, I think everything is sounding at the right time,” said John Marini, GOP Party chairman, Cassetti campaign treasurer, and the city’s corporation counsel. “I think on all fronts they are moving forward with this election as intended.”
Marini said this year’s campaign is different in that the GOP isn’t necessarily sending a single, uniform message that can play citywide. Now the races are being fought in each ward by the candidates running for the Board of Aldermen.
“What changes here is that it becomes more localized. It really depends on the individual candidates in the Wards needing their residents. It’s a different type of race,” Marini said.
Largest Financial Backers
Money donated to campaigns pay for campaign material such as mailings, lawn signs and advertising, and office rent. The forms can also indicate from where candidates are receiving the most support.
State law requires people donating at least $400 to check a box indicating whether they have a business contract with the municipality of at least $5,000.
The disclosure shows 50 percent percent of the $8,000 raised between July 1 and Sept. 30 came from people connected to Oak Ridge Waste & Recycling, the company that was hired by the city in December 2019 to collect residents’ recyclables each week. The city pays Oak Ridge $310,500 for the service, according to an email from the city’s finance department.
The disclosures include the names, addresses, occupation and employers of donors.
According to “Cassetti for Mayor,” documents, Oak Ridge owner John Decker donated $1,000. The company’s general manager, Joseph Sardone, donated $1,000. Alma Sardone, who lists the same home address as Joseph, donated $1,000, as did Tanya Caitto-Moore, the office manager at Oak Ridge.
Another $1,000 donation came from Frank Pullano, the owner of Banton Construction. The company is building the approximate $14 million police station at 65 Main St.
Former state Rep. Themis Klarides donated $1,000 on Aug. 31. Klarides works for MZS Law, the same firm as corporation counsel John Marini. The firm also serves as corporation counsel for the City of Derby.
A donation of $500 came from insurance agent Joseph Pinto, who checked ‘yes’ to the contract question, according to the campaign.
Another $1,000 contribution to “Cassetti for Mayor” in the time period came from Paula Antonucci of North Haven. The campaign listed her occupation as retired.
The campaign’s filing also list some names with extensive political knowledge.
Michael Mayko, a recently retired Connecticut Post reporter who previously covered the Cassetti administration, donated $200 to “Cassetti for Mayor 2021” and was reimbursed about $675 after buying stamps for the campaign. Mayko also donated to the Ansonia GOP. Kurt Miller, the former Seymour First Selectman and current Ansonia Chief Fiscal Officer, is also listed as being reimbursed for buying campaign-related material.
Opposition Reacts
Brian Perkins, a Democrat running for Alderman in Ansonia’s Fifth Ward, said the mayor and the Republicans should not accept donations from people or companies doing business with the city.
It looks bad, Perkins said, and is reflective of a national problem — too much money in politics.
The candidate has previously tried to challenge Mayor Cassetti over campaign funds.
Perkins asked Mayor Cassetti at an Aldermen meeting in March to pledge not to accept campaign contributions from any “current or potential developers in the city,” to which the mayor responded “No, I’m not taking anything.”
Perkins said the mayor broke his pledge. However, Oak Ridge isn’t a developer, and Banton Construction was the lowest bidder on a city project initially approved by voters at another location.
“When I said developers, I was really using development as a blanket statement for anyone doing business with the city,” Perkins said. “It’s weird for them (Team Cassetti) to get money from Banton when they have a contract with the city. It’s not illegal, but it’s definitely unethical to take money from companies doing business with the city,” he said.
The Valley Indy asked Perkins how it could be both legal and unethical.
“There are a lot of things in this world that are legal, right? But you would agree with that just because they’re legal doesn’t make them right,” Perkins said.
Marini said the donations to “Cassetti for Mayor” and the Ansonia Town Republican Committee are transparent, in accordance with state law.
“The important question is: are they by the book? Are they playing by the rules? This is being done by the book,” Marini said. “To the extent Democrats want to make this an issue, it is because they have no issue. They are bankrupt of ideas and issues.”
Perkins said Tuesday he was not sure if the Democratic Town Committee has a policy barring receiving money from people who do business with the city. He said he would check and get back to The Valley Indy. The Valley Indy also emailed the party’s chairman for the info Thursday night but did not hear back.
Marini said it would be hypocritical for the Democrats to complain if they don’t have a policy themselves.
Corrected Forms From Ansonia GOP
Sheila O’Malley, the city’s economic development director and grant writer, is helping the mayor’s campaign and the campaigns of his Republican running mates.
There were campaign disclosures this week from two political entities: one from “Cassetti for Mayor,” submitted to the Town Clerk’s Office, and one from the Ansonia Republican Town Committee, submitted to the state.
O’Malley said Tuesday accidentally attributed a series of donations to the Ansonia Town Republican Committee that were actually donations to “Cassetti for Mayor,” including the four $1,000 donations from Oak Ridge employees.
Corrected forms were shared with The Valley Indy Oct. 13. The list of donors to the Ansonia Republican Town Committee is listed toward the bottom of this post.
The following individuals donated to “Cassetti for Mayor” between July 1 and Sept. 30, 2021:
John Decker
New York
Owner, Oak Ridge Waste
$1000
Alma Sardone
Southington
Billing, United Healthcare
$1000
(shares same address with Oak Ridge employee below )
Joseph Sardone
Southington
General manager, Oak Ridge Waste
$1000
Tanya Ciatto-Moore
Milford
Office Manager, Oak Ridge Waste
$1000
Frank Pullano
North Haven
Owner, Banton Construction Co.
$1000
Themis Klarides
Milford
Attorney, MZS Law
$1000
Paula Antonucci
North Haven
Retired
$1000
David Papcin
Ansonia
Ansonia GOP Registrar of Voters
$500
Patricia Burns
Ansonia
Retired
$200
Amy Jalowiec
Ansonia
Teacher in West Haven
$500
Michael Mayko
Milford
Retired CT Post Ansonia reporter
$200
Sara Mayko
Honolulu, Hawaii
Senior acct executive, MVNP
$100
Frank Heusser Jr.
Ansonia
Owner, Frank’s LLC
$500
Joseph Pinto
Ansonia
Insurance agent, Sinclair Insurance Group
$500
Vincent Malerba
Florida
Retired
$500
The following people donated to the Ansonia Town Republican Committee between July 1 and Sept. 30:
(Donations in the time period totaled $3,950)
Michael Mayko
Milford
Retired
Former CT Post Ansonia reporter
$200
Tracey DeLibero
Ansonia
Clerk, City of Ansonia
GOP school board member running for re-election
$200
Tony Mammone
Ansonia
GOP Alderman running for re-election
Accountant, Citizens Bank
400
Judy Nicolari
Ansonia
Treasurer running for re-election with the GOP
$250
Joshua Shuart
Ansonia
GOP Alderman running for re-election
Professor, Sacred Heart University
$350
Bobbi Tarr
Ansonia
Alderwoman running for re-election
Retired
$250
Stephen Adamowski
Ansonia
GOP candidate for Alderman
Retired educator/school superintendent
$250
Sheila O’Malley
Woodbury
Ansonia economic development director/grant writer
$100
Greg Martin
Ansonia
Ansonia constituent services
Sporting goods manufacturer
$100
Greg Martin
Ansonia
Ansonia constituent services
Sporting goods manufacturer
$25
Joseph Cassetti
Ansonia
Retired
Alderman running for re-election
$125
John Marini
Ansonia
City corporation counsel
$100
David Cassetti
Ansonia
Mayor
$100
Philip Surato
Wallingford
Retired
$1000 *Box indicating whether business done with the city left blank
Lori Morello
Ansonia
Owner, Ultimate Cleaners
$500
Michael Mayko
Milford
Retired
Former CT Post Ansonia reporter
$100
