Gov. M. Jodi Rell. (CT News Junkie)
The Connecticut Citizens' Election Program handed the first election grants to qualified candidates at a press conference Tuesday that included some of the state's most prominent elected officials.
Gov. M. Jodi Rell, Attorney General Richard Blumenthal, House Majority Leader Rep. Chris Donovan, Secretary of the State Susan Bysiewicz and many other officials were on hand to celebrate the arrival of the long-awaited campaign finance reform.
"We expect that we will be changing the face of the elections in CT for good and yes forever. These reforms make Connecticut a national leader in electoral reforms and in fact I believe we are a model for the rest of the nation."
So far, according to the State Elections Enforcement Commission, 145 candidates have opted into the program, though that number is expected to significantly increase in the coming weeks. CT News Junkie wrote:
Secretary of State Susan Bysiewicz said it's estimated that 70 to 80 percent of candidates will participate in public financing this year, which is historic when compared to Maine and Arizona where the participation rate was about 30 percent in the first year. She said a federal survey a few years ago found that over time both Maine and Arizona experienced significant increases in the amount of candidates contesting races in both primaries and general elections. And voter participation in these two states has risen about 10 percent since public financing was enacted, Bysiewicz noted. CT News Junkie, June 3, 2008
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