Ted Hanser for Judge of Probate, Stamford 2014

In our current system, Judge of Probate is a political plum won through partisan election campaigns. I will advocate for legislation to make this a nonpartisan appointment based on qualifications.

Many of Connecticut's probate judges work part-time while raking in a generous income through court fees and enjoying retirement benefits and a far better health insurance plan than most Connecticut residents have.

Judge of Probate should be a salaried job, full-time in cities like Stamford - not an opportunity to profit from each family that has lost a loved one.

Probate Judges should not be simultaneously practicing as probate lawyers--this raises clear conflicts of interest. You can be assured that if elected, I will NOT run a lucrative law practice on the side. The Stamford court will be open for business with a judge on duty full time, and any idle hours will be devoted to public service. For example, we can begin digitizing all of Stamford's pre-1900 probate records and make them available on the Internet as an aid to historical and genealogical research. These public records are a valuable resource that should be accessible to all.

Please support my campaign to bring Connecticut's probate system in line with the recommended standards of the Uniform Probate Code.

Connecticut requires a funeral director's signature on the death certificate and bars anyone but a funeral director or embalmer from removing a body or transporting it. Why not have clear regulations that allow for home burial, as in Massachusetts?

It's Time To Stop Electing Probate Judges
From the Hartford Courant
March 9, 2010

Stamford court worker says union push led to firing
From the CT Post
April 17, 2014

USEFUL LINKS:
- Connecticut Probate Courts
- Uniform Probate Code recommended by the National Conference of Commissioners on Uniform State Laws
- Children In Placement, Inc.
- Green Burial Council
- Funeral Consumers Alliance of CT
Probate records as historical asset:
- Stamford Historical Society
- Connecticut Ancestry Society

WHY VOTE FOR DOUG:

• 42% of Connecticut's voters are not affiliated with the two major parties. The most common voter affiliation is unaffiliated, far more than the Democrats or Republicans.
• Support candidates and change in the election process for Registrar of Voters. The two party system supports two parties, not democracy.
• Support evolution of Registrar of Voters role from current model, where each of the two major parties is assured a Registrar, to a professionalized role less party-centric, more like the Town Clerks who are trained and certified (Registrars are not). Current Secretary of State Denise Merrill has issued an Election Performance Report 2012 with some support for modernizing the work now done (mostly) by party appointees.
• Support efforts to register new voters, and keep voters' registration data up to date. The Registrars already work with the Post Office and DMV, but should also reach out via the schools and landlords so that new and moved voters are more likely to learn how to update motor vehicle and voter registrations, and learn where to vote based on their new address.
• Support experiments in data sharing between states (such as ERIC) to cope with highly mobile population of modern America. In Connecticut we're likely to know where you moved if you update your driver's license, but if you leave the state or don’t maintain driver's license data, multiple towns may have you registered simultaneously, increasing costs for each town.
• Seek more complete and timely data entry for election history (this influences which voters get dropped from lists – important in towns with high turnover in population, such as college towns like Windham).
• Seek periodic review of data quality (standardize spellings of streets and towns for addresses, zip+4 review, missing fields). Data in Windham has low quality (typos, nonstandard abbreviations, and deferred entry of changes) after many years of under-budgeted, under-scheduled Registrar's office.
• A more robust approach to data, and a budget sufficient to serve voters and candidates well, is overdue in Windham. Doug Lary can bring additional office and data skills to the Windham Registrar of Voters Office.

HOW THE REGISTRAR OF VOTERS RACE WORKS:

• In Connecticut the two major parties are both assured a Registrar in each CT town. Sure there is a vote, and the top two candidates win, but if either of the two parties with the greatest statewide registrations is not among those top two, then the major party candidates are also elected as Registrar. In practice this has meant that most towns, like Windham, have a Registrar for the sizable party in town, another Registrar for a party that is significant across the state but much smaller in town, and no Registrar is selected from the unaffiliated or minor party voters even though they commonly far outnumber the smaller of the two major parties in town and sometimes (such as in Windham) outnumber the larger major party as well. Hartford is the recent rare exception, where a Working Families Registrar was elected by gathering more votes than the Republican candidate in 2008.
• The Democrat can't lose. The Republican can't lose. That two-party system is difficult to run against. Votes for the two major party candidates are unnecessary – their seats are secure. The only impact that voting for Windham's Registrar of Voters has this November is to include, or not include, a third Registrar. Any minor party or petitioning candidate who gets a third of the vote or more becomes Registrar in a three-way race, but the major party candidates become Registrar regardless of how many votes they gather – their seats are assured once placed on the ballot by their parties.
• Voting, and the mechanics of voting, matter. Don't leave all the work to the major parties – support additional Registrars of Voters.
• No matter which line or lines on the ballot a Registrar candidate's name appears on, if elected they serve as the Registrar for the party they are affiliated with in the registration system.  Each Registrar who is seated then also selects a Deputy of the same party.  Should either be unable to complete their 2-year term, a person from the same Party is made the replacement.  While a candidate can run with many or no party endorsement(s), they can only serve as the Registrar of one party if elected.  Nonetheless, Registrars are supposed to serve all voters without partisan politics.

EXPERIENCE:

• Windham resident since 1983 and active in local civic organizations such as Thread City Development (an organization seeking to improve downtown region) and Willimantic Victorian Neighborhood Association (active in preservation of 600 local buildings contributing to the neighborhood's Historic District and recognition in National Register of Historic Places).
• BS degree in Business Administration, Eastern Connecticut State University, Minor Data Processing.
• Decades of computer experience with large data sets. Has worked in manufacturing as a Cost Accountant then Controller, in software utility industry as a Programmer and Sales Support specialist, in insurance industry as a programmer then calendar subject matter expert, in IBM as an Exchange e-mail and Calendaring subject matter expert. Now works as Technology Coordinator in the Scotland CT school district.  Has been downsized, outsourced, and globalized – but still good with data.
• Active in local Government as outspoken advocate of participatory democracy through citizen involvement in appointed roles on boards and commissions.
• Board member of, and active observer with, Connecticut Citizen Election Audit, which observes and reports on the random audits (required in CT) of 10% of the polling districts after each election. Participated in the recount of Bridgeport's troubled governor's race of 2010, and audits of several districts across Connecticut over last five years.
• Has assisted in multiple campaigns (including Green Party member Jean de Smet's 2009 Windham Mayoral campaign), with particular focus on working with registrars' voter data files. Familiar with the relational database structure and field meanings and has solid grasp on election history data and its uses.
• Maintains a Windham voter data collection with significantly improved information in parallel to the registrars': with corrected addresses, updated phone numbers, e-mail addresses, and status (dead, moved, inactive, etc). 
• Works with current Windham Registrars on projects requiring analysis such as redistricting and review of potential polling sites.
• In 2014 Doug was selected by Windham’s Democrat Registrar as a candidate for Election Moderator.  Doug studied on-line for the role, attended hands on training, and passed the test. Doug is now a certified Election Moderator in Connecticut.  This is the role that guides the day’s voting for a single polling site. 3rd party Moderators are rare. 
• Doug has already been trained by and worked with members of the Secretary of the State's office (SOTS) in registration procedures. In 2011 Doug worked with a non-partisan team spearheaded by Lourdes Montalvo of SOTS and local activist James Flores to enroll new voters at Windham Heights Apartments and then assisted in compiling the data collected by the team for review by interested parties and the Registrars.
• During his campaign, Doug continues to help voters update their registration details so that they can vote easily on Election Day. 
• Served 2008-2012 on Windham Ethics Commission, most recently as Chair.
• Served 2013-2014 on Windham Charter Revision Commission, most recently as Vice Chair.
• Registered as a Green Party member since 2004 in Windham. Served on CT Green Party's Platform Committee in 2011-2012. Ran with The Bottom Line Party for Board of Education (2011) and assisted several candidates and parties with voter registration data to create issue- or candidate-specific lists for calling, walking, or mailing.
• In the 2012 election Doug got 875 votes (about 12%) for Registrar of Voters (Windham).
• Analytical mind, obsessed with data.

Contact: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., (860) 423-5857, Facebook, Lary 3rd Registrar blog

DOCUMENTS:

 Download a voter registration form - inscripcion de votantes

 Apply for an absentee ballot - solicitud de voto por ausencia

 Voter's Bill of Rights - Carta de Derechos del Votante

HOW TO HELP:

This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. for a lawn sign:

Print and distribute
Doug's flyer (PDF)

Donate by check to:

Lary 3rd Registrar
c/o Jean de Smet, Treasurer
39 Davis St.
Willimantic, CT 06226

Approved by Doug Lary
Paid for by the Green Party of Connecticut

Candidate statement:

My name is Matthew Went. I am twenty-five years old and currently work as a wilderness educator. I lead outdoor trips for teenagers to help teach and facilitate building of leadership skills as well as teach back-country living skills and foster appreciation for the environment. I get a rare opportunity to bring impressionable young adults into the wilderness, and not only teach them how to kayak or hike or canoe, but also build a foundation that is outside of everyday social life, a moral foundation for being a better person. The changes that I see year after year in kids is astounding. They may go back to life as usual after a trip, but there is a lasting impression that stays with them for their whole lives.

I myself studied for five months in South America under the National Outdoor Leadership School. NOLS is an influential school in learning and teaching fundamental leadership skills in harsh environments. They run trips for teenagers, as well as work with NASA teams, military units, and adventurers like me. For five months I learned how to lead and how to teach in Patagonia, Chile. We traveled through places as amazing as glacial fields and mountaintops, to paddling sea-kayaks with dolphins and penguins. What that experience taught me is something removed from a normal perspective. I was able to see and live with people at a stripped-down, basic level. I learned fundamental things about how people work, and how to work with people. With positive, constructive leadership skills coupled with teamwork and full group buy-in, any task can be accomplished. Whether that task is how to climb a glacier and make camp before dark, or hash out the details on a new budget, the right tools and the right people can get the job done.

That is why I am running for State Representative: I feel I am a person who has the right tools and drive to get positive, productive projects completed. I have no obligations to any person or organization other than the people I am to represent. I will look out for and listen to the people of the district, because that is the inherent nature of the job of State Representative. I feel I am the best choice for State Representative because of my unwillingness to be satisfied with a poor performance. I think that reform and a critical eye needs to be shown towards the current way our government gets things done. There needs to be a reform of the environmental policies as well as education and infrastructure of this state.

I believe that a better Connecticut comes through statewide cooperation and people taking care of people. The farmers are looked after, but so are the business people and students and elderly. This kind of Connecticut is not a utopia but a real achievable goal with the right mentality. There needs to be less privatization and more open public services and land and we need to look seriously at the way our current state economy works. Focus should not be on business alone, but on real people and real livelihoods. We can start by building a fair, positive budget and make everyone accountable for their choices. I want to actually change things for the better and not just change them to make change.

The person I am in everyday life is the person that will be elected. I do not put on a different mask to run for office and will not compromise on my beliefs and moral standards. I think if people like me, then they like the real me and can feel safe and assured when voting for me.

Contact: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Approved by Matt Went
Paid for by the Green Party of Connecticut

Candidate statement:

My name is Ed Heflin and I am pursuing the Senate Seat for District 36 (Greenwich, New Canaan, and Stamford, a.k.a. "Connecticut's Banking District") to bring "Green" to Hartford and prosperity back to Connecticut through healthy local economies, new jobs, and new revenue for local infrastructure and public priorities via a Public Banking Platform.

What is Public Banking? It is Democratic Banking at its most fundamental level to return financial health, wealth, and prosperity to the people of Main Street!

Who am I? I'm a Wall Street consultant, an entrepreneur, and academic bringing my 15+ years of Wall Street experience to Main Street, to the people of Main Street, where it belongs! I hold six university degrees including an MBA, an MS in Computational Finance, and a PhD in Physics.

And since I'm one of the co-coordinators for Public Banking in the State of Connecticut, there is none better suited to bring "Green" to Hartford and prosperity back to Connecticut through Public Banking. For more information, please refer to our open public banking websites:

Links:

• Ed Heflin videos on Public Access Channel 23
• Public Banking in Connecticut
• Public Banking Institute

Contact: (646) 625-9565, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., Facebook

Approved by Ed Heflin
Paid for by the Green Party of Connecticut

Cora Santaguida attended Greenwich public schools, graduating from Greenwich High School in 1996.  She graduated cum laude from the College of New Rochelle in 2000, earning a Bachelor's degree in English.  She is honored in Who's Who Among Students in American Universities and Colleges, and also by Kappa Gamma Pi, the national honor society for leadership at Catholic colleges.

After working as a teacher's assistant at Greenwich Catholic School, she accepted a position with the City of Stamford Mayor's Youth Services Bureau, where she supervised the YACline program, a teen information and referral phone line (a joint program of the YSB and the city Department of Health and Social Services). She worked alongside other YSB staff and several area youth service agencies to promote positive youth development. She resigned from the position in 2003 due to a long term illness.

In addition to working in Stamford, Cora has also dedicated several hundred hours volunteering at Stamford Hospital and the Center for Sexual Assault Crisis Counseling and Education.

Cora maintains a strong dedication to youth, and believes in success and empowerment of students through academics, sports, the arts, community involvement, and employment.

Contact: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

LINKS

• Alternate Routes to Success (ARTS) Program
• Yerwood Center
• Chester Addison Community Center
• Future 5
• Mayor's Youth Leadership Council
• Mayor's Youth Employment Program
• Stamford's Focus on Youth
• Child Guidance Center

Approved by Cora Santaguida
Paid for by the Green Party of Connecticut

(District 125 includes parts of New Canaan and Wilton--see map)

The first priority for the legislature must be to address our stagnant economy. A green jobs and green loan program will put people back to work insulating old buildings, retrofitting homes and schools with solar panels, and developing new industries for fuel cells, photovoltaics, wind turbines, biofuels, LED lighting, better batteries, and other clean energy technologies. As more people go back to work and earn a living wage, their spending will stimulate business and restore the state economy.

Contact:  581-3193, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

• 2012-present: Treasurer, CT Green Party
• 2002-present: Secretary, Fairfield County chapter, CT Green Party
• 2001-present: Board member, Teachers Against Prejudice
• 1990-2000, 2008-present: Taught English to international students
• 2000-2007: Program director at a medical charity addressing global health
• 1985-1990: Taught English in China
• 1993: M.A. in English, University of Alabama
• 1985: B.A. in linguistics, Swarthmore College
• David has lived under a one-party system (China) and a two-party system (the USA). He hopes one day to live in a multiparty democracy.

ISSUES:

• Reform election laws to encourage new candidates with fresh ideas
• Enact a Connecticut Health Plan to insure all state residents
• Close Indian Point and Millstone nuclear plants; promote sustainable energy
• Support mass transit and Smart Growth; contain sprawl and overbuilding
• Equalize education funding by relying more on state revenues, less on local property taxes
• Enable all towns to implement Land Value Tax as an alternative to traditional property tax (currently permitted only in New London)
• End the Drug War that imprisons our youth and sparks gun violence

More issue positions

• CT Coalition for Universal Health Care
• RailTEC (Rail*Trains*Ecology*Cycling)
• Bike Walk Connecticut
• Fairfield Green Food Guide
• Right to Know CT
• Rock the Reactors
• CT Coalition Against Millstone
• CT Coalition for Justice in Education Funding
• Efficacy (drug policy reform)

• Ghana Children's Fund
• Norwalk/Nagarote Sister City Project

Approved by David Bedell
Paid for by the Green Party of Connecticut