Ridgefield Democrats worked tirelessly over years, particularly during the last 12 months, to cast a wide net, interview broadly, and recruit the best possible candidates to represent and lead Ridgefield at every position in town government. We succeeded in nominating candidates of the highest caliber and integrity, with the strengths of character and ability to engage with the broad range of residents’ priorities, to ensure accountability, transparency, and effective, constructive local government to benefit ALL Ridgefielders.

We deplore the false, misleading accusations made against one of our outstanding Democrats, Jon Paradiso, who is running for the Board of Education on November 7th on Row A with Rudy Marconi.

The baseless targeting of our qualified pro-education candidate, led by local Republicans and their collaborators, is a tactic we condemn. Casting doubt on Jon Paradiso’s impartiality, right to serve and legitimate ballot access is election interference, reflecting the horrific state of national politics, brought home to Ridgefield.

The Democratic Town Committee and our BOE candidates, Wyatt Lipman and Jonathan Paradiso, are deeply disappointed that the League of Women Voters canceled their planned public debate. Wyatt and Jon are committed to engaging with all Ridgefielders on the issues that matter most: restoring civility and collaboration, accelerating efforts to hire and support the best teachers, partnering with parents and our community to deliver results, implementing policies on appropriate class sizes, and boosting budget transparency and communication.

As a general rule, for our campaigns, the Ridgefield DTC focuses on our candidates’ positive attributes and qualifications. We don’t employ negative attacks on our opponents. In my view, it is more important (and more effective) to show voters the reasons our Democratic candidates are the right fit for Ridgefield.

Sometimes, however, opponents do or say things so egregious they must be addressed. Sean McEvoy is a Republican member of the Board of Education (BoE) who is running for re-election this year. At a recent BoE meeting, speaking approvingly of proposed programming for gifted and talented students, McEvoy stated, “We spend a lot of time focusing on the bottom of the bucket trying to get them up to where they need to be.”

As campaign season gets under way, I want to share my view on political campaigns. Most believe that campaigns exist to introduce candidates to voters and ask for their support.