Why They Run; Parties Prepare their Platforms for November

Party unity was thick at both town committee caucuses Tuesday night. There were no last-minute attempts to change the slate or even a single vote against a candidate. Unanimity ruled.

With Labor Day the traditional start of formal campaigning in Cheshire, the Republican and Democratic candidates have a few weeks to polish their campaign speeches and build a platform.

Democratic Town Council incumbent Michael Ecke, who's running for an at-large seat, said the existing council needs to be more open. "This council is not transparent. It's the big issue we face."

Republican Town Committee Vice Chairman Thomas Pinkham said his party's candidates will run on fiscal restraint. "We showed people we had a good grasp of the town's financial position.

Ecke said he's concerned the slant in town is against funding education. "... It's clearly against education and educational facilities, including athletic facilities," he said.

The town's capital budget plan contains requests for $1.1 million to upgrade a number of school buildings. The council is now reviewing the $38 million dollar budget that covers major projects. It must vote on the budget before the municipal election on Nov. 8.

Budget Committee Chairman Dave Schrumm, who is running unopposed for the 1st District Council seat, didn't respond to a request to comment for this article.  

At the Democratic caucus, two political newcomers were nominated to run for Town Council seats:

• Joe Schmitt, an attorney for Travelers Insurance, is running for the 3rd District seat against Republican Andrew Falvey.
• Dan Nowak, a sports writer for the New Haven Register, is running for an at-large council seat.

Schmitt said he's running because he felt like it was time to get involved. "I'm unhappy with how the council dealt with the budget. The money is the people's money," he said.

Nowak said he was approached by both parties to run for the November municipal election. He said he was told his knowledge of sports was a helpful addition to the slate.

The campaigns are expected to become more visible in early September when yard signs are delivered and candidates begin to visit neighborhoods with political literature in hand.

Editor's note: The slate of candidates for both parties can be found here for the Democrats and here for the Republicans.