DeStefano Moves on with AFL-CIO Backing

Website Vooweb.com provides the biggest collection of professional Web 2.0 Templates. Web 2.0 Templates - its a website templates which made by world-class designers. Buy our Web 2.0 Templates | A family cooking recipes with hundreds of healthy, whole-food cooking recipes for the home cook. Healthy Food cooking Recipes For Your Entire Family

DeStefano Moves on with AFL-CIO Backing

New Haven Register May 23, 2006

Andy Bromage, Register Staff

-HARTFORD - New Haven Mayor John DeStefano Jr., dusting himself off from a dramatic defeat at this weekend's Democratic Party convention, sought to re-energize his campaign for governor Monday with a rare endorsement from the Connecticut AFL-CIO.

DeStefano appeared on the Capitol steps beside his running mate, West Hartford Mayor Scott Slifka, and Connecticut AFL-CIO President John Olson, two days after Stamford Mayor Dannel P. Malloy won the party?s nod for governor by an ultra-thin four-vote margin.

The labor federation's executive board voted last week to endorse DeStefano after the seven-term mayor secured the backing of two-thirds of its membership. Olson said it was the first time the federation has endorsed a candidate in a Democratic gubernatorial primary, and at least 18 years since it made any endorsement for governor. The full AFL-CIO is expected to approve the executive board's recommended endorsement at its gathering next month, Olson said.

DeStefano was generally seen as the favorite heading into Saturday's convention and had declared he had enough delegates to win, even telling reporters he would ask Malloy to be his running mate. The campaign even sent a mailer to delegates last week profiling a former state lawmaker from East Lyme as the delegate who "put John DeStefano over the top, giving him the majority of delegates at Saturday's convention.

On Monday, DeStefano downplayed the significance of the party nomination and looked ahead to the Aug. 8 primary.

"I felt great coming out of the convention, I really did," DeStefano said. "We always knew we were going to a primary. I'm really focused on the next 10 weeks and having a great win on Aug. 8. As far as the other side, that's not my concern any longer."

The DeStefano campaign now has 40 labor organizations, comprised of 160,000 members, backing his campaign, and he is counting on union members to deliver voters to the polls in August.

Olson said the AFL-CIO is backing DeStefano because he's the only candidate with the "mettle" to lead the state and take on the popular Republican Gov. M. Jodi Rell.

"He's taken the institution of Yale, he's taken different sectors of the labor movement, community groups, (and) he kept them all focused," Olson said. "And he did all this in the face of letters to the editor and editorials that were beating him on both sides. That's what we need in a governor."

Malloy mustered 799 votes to DeStefano's 795 at Saturday's convention in one of the state's tightest political contests in recent memory. Malloy spokesman Chris Cooney said Monday the Stamford mayor was feeling great following the nomination and countered DeStefano's labor announcement saying Malloy enjoys broad support from rank-and-file union members across the state. Cooney could not provide more precise numbers.

Cooney said the nomination will make a "huge difference" in the primary.

"Now we get to tap into party infrastructure, town infrastructure, ready-made visibility, fields offices and general presence because we are the endorsed candidate for governor," said Cooney.