West Hartford Mayor Scott Slifka and New Haven Mayor John DeStefano.(Christine Stuart photo)Two days after having lost the Democratic endorsement by four votes, New Haven Mayor John DeStefano and his running mate West Hartford Mayor Scott Slifka accepted the endorsement of the state’s labor unions represented by AFL-CIO President John Olsen.
Olsen said this is the first time in its history that it has endorsed a candidate before its convention in June, which is the labor union equivalent to the Democratic State Convention this past weekend. DeStefano shrugged off the four vote loss to Stamford Mayor Dannel Malloy by reintroducing Slifka as his running mate Monday. “I felt great coming out of the convention,” DeStefano said. “I was proud of how my team of supporters behaved,” he said. There were several challenges and changes to the delegate count at the convention, which in the end worked in his opponents favor. Click here to read what happended at the convention. “I always knew this was going to go to a primary,” DeStefano said. And DeStefano feels Slifka helps give him an edge over Malloy in the primary.Slifka said West Hartford is the 9th biggest town in the state with the second highest voter turnout. He said he expects West Hartford Democrats will relate to DeStefano’s message and turnout to vote for him in August. DeStefano said he was convinced that Democrats who vote in the primary will “vote based on what’s important to them.” And what’s important to them is access to affordable health care, good jobs, and clean energy, he said.
