Several Republican and Democratic voters in Brookfield said they were annoyed with the volume of campaign literature they received over the last two months and that it had little impact on the candidates they supported.
“What is crucial is that we read the newspapers and the newspapers do a good job in reporting,” said Antoinette Bosco, a former editor of The Litchfield County Times.
She said she supported former state Rep. Elizabeth Esty of Cheshire in the Democratic primary in the 5th Congressional District, in part, because, “I want to see more women get into office.”
Standing outside Brookfield High School, Bosco said she voted for U.S. Rep. Chris Murphy, D-Cheshire, in the U.S. Senate primary because he has supported programs along liberal lines “to help the poor” and other important constituencies.
Vincent Urbanski, who declined to say which candidates he supported in the Republican primaries, was upset with the amount of phone calls and direct mail he received over the recent weeks.
“I don’t need it,” he complained. “Phone calls are the worst. I got up to 25 calls a day.”
“I think the television advertising is informational, but you have to read between the lines,” Urbanski added.
“I’ve gotten so much literature in the mail – mostly garbage,” Democrat David Grossman said.
“Every day I got two to three pieces, and it was hardly reliable in my opinion,” he said. “They were not educational, and to some extent some of them were misleading.”
Grossman said he supported Esty in the 5th District race.
“They’re all have a cloud over them,” he said. “But I have to make a choice.”
“There is a cloud in that [Esty] allegedly has taken contributions from people that her husband regulates, which I find troublesome,” he said. “But I have to make a choice.”
Grossman said state House Speaker Chris Donovan’s campaign has been the subject of a federal investigation since May and since charges have been made against his former campaign manager and chief fundraiser that placed “a cloud” over him.
He said he didn’t consider Dan Roberti of Kent because he “didn’t like his literature.”
Grossman said he voted for Murphy over former Secretary of the State Susan Bysiewicz in the U.S. Senate contest because he has been impressed with how Murphy has served the 5th District.
“Susan is a very nice lady, and I have contributed to both candidates over the years,” he said.
“As an attorney, I do business with Murphy’s staff, and the staff has been exceptional,” Grossman added.
“I also think Murphy will do a better job running against Linda McMahon in the general election,” he said, referring to the favorite in the Republican U.S. Senate primary.
Scott Senete said he doesn’t believe “a lot of the advertising was effective. A lot of it was negative and to some degree it was misleading.”
He voted for Mark Greenberg, the Litchfield real estate developer, in the Republican primary in the 5th District because he is “a friend” and “a very ethical man.”
“I think he’ll do the right thing,” Senete added. “He won’t go to the beltway to please the crowd. He understands that the government can’t budget beyond our means.”
He said he voted for McMahon over former U.S. Rep. Chris Shays of Bridgeport in the GOP U.S. Senate primary.
“I think she understands what creates jobs and what doesn’t create jobs,” Senete said.
Democrat Steve Werndorfer said he voted for Esty in the 5th District primary because “Donovan is a crook and I don’t know Roberti.”
Donovan has repeatedly said he had no knowledge of the alleged scheme to trade his influence for campaign donations. His former campaign manager and finance director have been arrested and charged with conspiring to hide the source of $27,500 in campaign donations. The donations came from roll-your-own tobacco shop owners looking to defeat legislation detrimental to their business interests.
In the Senate race, he said he supported Murphy because “he’s been a terrific congressman.”
“My wife has Parkinson ’s disease, and he has attended our support group meetings,” Werndorfer said. “He’s one of the leading lights on health care issues.”
Sondra Bradford-Jennings said she backed Donovan in the 5th District.
She said the recent investigation of his campaign wasn’t a concern because “everybody is investigated for something.”
Bradford-Jennings said she voted for Murphy in the Senate race since he was “instrumental” in helping a nonprofit group that she used to work for acquire funding “for a cutting-edge program.” She said that between herself and her husband, who is a Republican, their home was inundated with campaign literature.
“It’s just annoying, because it overwhelmed me,” Bradford-Jennings said. “Some of the fliers are informative, but I prefer to look and the newspapers and the blogs.”
Republican Brett McCleary said he voted for Greenberg in the 5th District and McMahon for the U.S. Senate because of their conservative positions on economic issues.
