Election 2019

Election 2019: New Canaan Hub [UPDATING] 

By |

[Note: Here are election results.]

Candidates for elected office in New Canaan greeted voters outside polling places at New Canaan High School and Saxe Middle School on an overcast, crisp Tuesday morning, saying they were seeing a strong turnout and hoping for good results. Craig Donovan, a Democrat challenging incumbent Republican First Selectman Kevin Moynihan for New Canaan’s highest elected office, said it was “wonderful to be here and say hi to everybody, meet all the good people and just enjoy what the best part of what America gives us, a chance to vote.”

“I learned a lot from so many people and I am still getting people coming up to me with their ideas for how this could be a better town, so it’s been a wonderful experience,” Donovan said. Moynihan said he was feeling tired but optimistic that New Canaan is turning out a big vote. 

As of 4 p.m., the number of voters who took to the polls was higher than the total who voted on Election Day in the tightly contested race of 2017 (see table below), when Moynihan earned 33 more votes than his Democratic opponent, Kit Devereaux, to win election to his first term. Asked how she was feeling about Election Day this year, Devereaux, who is seeking to retain her seat on the Board of Selectmen, said, “There are a lot of people who have come out to vote, and that’s what counts.”

Her counterpart on the Board, Republican incumbent Nick Williams, said he was “feeling great” despite some allergies to the fallen leaves that dotted the areas around the GOP and Democratic tents set up outside the auxiliary gym at NCHS. “Look, I think our message has gotten out there,” Williams said.

Election 2019

Election 2019: NewCanaanite.com Endorsement for First Selectman 

By |

First Selectman Kevin Moynihan in working hard and creatively to make good on major campaign promises has earned a second term in New Canaan’s highest elected office. The Republican incumbent has increased commuter parking downtown while avoiding an expensive full parking deck and has identified a town parcel in northwestern New Canaan where a cell tower could be located while a private property owner has done the same in the northeast, the latter a project that started before he took office. He’s overseen the installation of a natural gas line and wisely tapped one of New Canaan’s foremost youth sports and fundraising experts to help create a public-private partnership to support and sustain our prized athletic fields. His challenger, Democrat Craig Donovan, is a highly educated, articulate candidate with substantial management experience who has worked as an advisor to and trainer of government officials. In our interview and at last week’s debate, Donovan sketched out some good if inchoate ideas–for example, creation of a 2040 “vision” of New Canaan to help the town plan long-term.

Board of Selectmen

Election 2019: NewCanaanite.com Endorsements for Selectmen

By |

[Note: Our endorsement for first selectman can be found here.]

In rising above party politics and at times checking New Canaan’s highest elected official to preserve a balance of power within the town government’s executive branch, Selectmen Kit Devereaux and Nick Williams each have earned re-election to the Board of Selectmen on Nov. 5. Williams, a career attorney, is a four-term incumbent Republican who had served previously on the Board of Education, including as chairman. Devereaux, a Democrat who retired from a career in finance, served for eight years apiece on the Town Council and Board of Finance, and after a shorter stint on the Parks & Recreation Commission challenged for the first selectman seat two years ago, falling just 33 votes short. She landed in a selectman seat and, as evident during last week’s Candidates Debate, Devereaux and Williams—though they don’t agree on every vote or matter that comes before the Board, for example, on moving forward on a possible sale of Vine Cottage or charging for disabled parking spaces at the train station—have forged a strong and effective working relationship.

Election 2019

Election 2019: NewCanaanite.com Endorsements for Town Council 

By |

This year, seven candidates—four Republicans and three Democrats—are seeking election to six seats on the Town Council, New Canaan’s legislative body. Those six seats currently are held by four Republicans and two Democrats. First, Republican incumbent Steve Karl has earned re-election to a fourth term. A fourth-generation New Canaanite and local business owner whose family is deeply involved in the community, Karl has been a thoughtful, collegial and effective councilman. As Karl noted during last week’s debate, former Councilman Dick White many years ago told him when he took the reins of the Bylaws and Ordinances Committee, “Kid, don’t screw this up.” He hasn’t.

News

Podcast: Election Day Tutorial with Kathleen Corbet

By |



This week on 0684-Radi0, our free weekly podcast (subscribe here in the iTunes Store), we talk to Kathleen Corbet, a member of the League of Women Voters of New Canaan, about the number of candidates running for local office this year, how they’re elected to their various seats, what the ballot itself looks like (a sample is embedded below as a PDF) and recent changes to New Canaan’s Charter. Here’s a FAQ from the League:

How many candidates can I vote for? For First Selectman, you can choose 1. For Selectman, you can choose 1. 

For Town Council, you can choose any number up to 6. You don’t have to choose 6; in other words, there is no penalty for voting for fewer than 6.