Leonard Paoletta | |
---|---|
48th Mayor of Bridgeport, Connecticut | |
In office 1981–1985 | |
Preceded by | John C. Mandanici |
Succeeded by | Thomas W. Bucci |
Member of the ConnecticutHouseofRepresentatives from the 136th district | |
In office January 6,1971 –January 3,1973 | |
Preceded by | William J. Lavery Jr. |
Succeeded by | Alan Harris Nevas |
Personal details | |
Born | Bridgeport,Connecticut,United States | November 9,1934
Political party | Republican |
Residence | Easton,Connecticut |
Alma mater | Fairfield University (BA) Georgetown University (JD) |
Leonard S. "Lenny" Paoletta (born November 9,1934) is an American lawyer and former mayor of Bridgeport,Connecticut from 1981 to 1985. He was a Republican. [1] Earlier in his career,he served in the Connecticut House of Representatives in the 1970s. [2]
Paoletta was born in Bridgeport,Connecticut,on November 9,1934. [3] He is a second-generation Italian-American. [4]
Paoletta graduated from Warren Harding High School. He then received his bachelor's degree from Fairfield University,where he was a member of the Fairfield Stags men's basketball team,and his J.D. degree from Georgetown University Law School. [4] He was admitted to the bar in Connecticut in 1959. [3]
Paoletta first ran for the Connecticut State Senate in 1962,but lost the general election to Louis Gladstone. [5] He served in the Connecticut House of Representatives in the 1970s. [2]
In 1979,Paoletta ran unsuccessfully for mayor of Bridgeport against Democratic incumbent John C. Mandanici,although Paoletta held Mandanici to his smallest margin of victory in his three elections. [1]
In 1981,Paoletta (then age 48) again challenged Mandanici and was successful,narrowly edging out the incumbent by just 64 votes (17,950 to 17,886 votes,following a recount). [1] [6] The New York Times reported at the time that "In what is virtually a trademark of Bridgeport politics,the mayoral campaign was held against a backdrop of violence and bizarre incidents." [1] Paoletta was sworn in on his 47th birthday,becoming Bridgeport's 47th elected mayor. [7]
In 1983,Paoletta won reelection,defeating both Democratic challenger Charles B. Tisdale and Mandanici (who ran under the third party "Taxpayers Party" ballot line after losing the Democratic primary election to Tisdale). [6] Paoletta received 15,606 votes,Tisdale 14,358 votes,and Mandanici 9,728 votes. [6]
As mayor,Paoletta clashed with Joseph A. Walsh,who had been Bridgeport's superintendent of police for 22 years. [8] Walsh had been a colorful and controversial figure in the city for many years. [9] In December 1983,at Paoletta's urging,the city's Board of Police Commissioners voted 6-0 to force Walsh into retirement. [8] Paoletta immediately appointed Thomas Thear,the former police chief of Battle Creek,Michigan,to be the interim leader of Bridgeport's 420-member police department. [8] Walsh subsequently challenged his dismissal,and the Bridgeport Civil Service Commission ordered his reinstatement. [9]
According to the New York Times,"two burly detectives,acting under orders from the Mayor,blocked him from entering his office. The dispute then shifted to the courts and a lengthy hearing on 185 charges of misconduct that the city drew up against the superintendent." [9] In mid-1984,a state trial referee ruled that "no just cause" existed for Walsh's dismissal. [9] During the seven-month standoff between Walsh and Paoletta,the police commissioners assumed day-to-day control of the police department for a time. Walsh returned to work in July 1984,after an "uneasy truce" took hold. [10]
In 1985,Paoletta was defeated in the general election by Democratic candidate Thomas W. (Tom) Bucci. [11] In September 1989,Paoletta ran in a seven-way Republican primary for mayor,but came in second place,losing by 32 votes to Mary C. Moran,who went on to win the general election and become mayor. [12]
In 1997,Governor John G. Rowland named him as a member of Connecticut's Workers' Compensation Commission. [13]
In the 1990s,Paoletta was a lawyer with Seeley &Berglass,which has offices in New Haven and Fairfield. [2] In 1994,Paoletta moved to Easton,Connecticut. [2] [14] The same year,Paoletta unsuccessfully ran for probate judge. [2]
In September 1994,Paoletta (then 59 years old) was shot on the steps of Holy Rosary Roman Catholic Church School in Bridgeport in an apparently random shooting;a priest and a parishioner were also shot. [2] Paoletta was seriously wounded but recovered following emergency surgery at Bridgeport Hospital. [2]
Jane Margaret Byrne was an American politician who served as the 50th mayor of Chicago from April 16,1979,until April 29,1983. Prior to her tenure as mayor,Byrne served as Chicago's commissioner of consumer sales from 1969 until 1977,the only female in the mayoral cabinet.
Vincent Richard Impellitteri was an Italian-American politician and judge who served as the 101st Mayor of New York City from 1950 to 1953. He was elected as a Democrat and president of the City Council in 1945 and reelected in 1949. When Mayor William O'Dwyer resigned in 1950,he became acting mayor. He lost the Democratic primary for the nomination for the rest of the term but was subsequently elected mayor on a new ticket,the "Experience Party". He lost the Democratic primary when he ran for a full term in 1953 and became a judge in 1954.
Ella Rosa Giovianna Oliva Grasso was an American politician and member of the Democratic Party who served as the 83rd governor of Connecticut from January 8,1975,to December 31,1980,after rejecting past offers of candidacies for Senate and governor. She was the first woman elected governor in Connecticut and the fourth woman to be elected governor of a U.S. state. She is also the first female governor to not be the spouse or widow of a former governor. She resigned as governor due to her battle with ovarian cancer.
The Connecticut Post is a daily newspaper located in Bridgeport,Connecticut. It serves Fairfield County and the Lower Naugatuck Valley. Municipalities in the Post's circulation area include Ansonia,Bridgeport,Darien,Derby,Easton,Fairfield,Milford,Monroe,New Canaan,Orange,Oxford,Redding,Ridgefield,Seymour,Shelton,Stratford,Trumbull,Weston,Westport and Wilton. The newspaper is owned and operated by the Hearst Corporation,a multinational corporate media conglomerate with $4 billion in revenues. The Connecticut Post also gains revenue by offering classified advertising for job hunters with minimal regulations and separate listings for products and services.
Jasper McLevy was an American politician who served as mayor of Bridgeport,Connecticut from 1933 until 1957. He was a member of the Socialist Party,later leaving in protest to join the Social Democratic Federation.
The 2010 Connecticut gubernatorial election took place on November 2,2010,to elect the 88th Governor of Connecticut. Incumbent Republican Governor Jodi Rell had announced in a press conference in Hartford on November 9,2009,that she would not seek re-election in 2010. The sites Cook Political Report and CQ Politics both rated the election as a toss-up. This was the first open seat gubernatorial election in the state since 1994. As of 2024,this is the last time the Governor's office in Connecticut changed partisan control.
Dan Debicella is a former State Senator and businessman,who represented the 21st district in the Connecticut State Senate. He was also the 2010 and 2014 Republican candidate for Connecticut's Fourth Congressional District.
Bridgeport is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Connecticut and the fifth-most populous city in New England,with a population of 148,654 in 2020. Located in eastern Fairfield County at the mouth of the Pequonnock River on Long Island Sound,it is a port city 60 miles (97 km) from Manhattan and 40 miles (64 km) from The Bronx. It borders the towns of Trumbull to the north,Fairfield to the west,and Stratford to the east. Bridgeport and other towns in Fairfield County make up the Greater Bridgeport Planning Region,as well as the Bridgeport–Stamford–Norwalk–Danbury metropolitan statistical area,the second largest metropolitan area in Connecticut. The Bridgeport–Stamford–Norwalk–Danbury metropolis forms part of the New York metropolitan area.
Bill Finch is an American retired politician who served as mayor of Bridgeport,Connecticut for eight years after previously serving in the Connecticut Senate for seven years. As mayor,he was known for his strong environmentally friendly policies and his tax reform efforts,both of which received local and national praise. He was defeated for re-election as mayor in 2015 by former mayor and convicted felon Joe Ganim. Finch has since moved on to the private sector and rejected the idea of running for mayor again.
Joseph Peter Ganim is an American Democratic politician and former attorney who is the mayor of Bridgeport,Connecticut. He was elected mayor of the city six times,serving from 1991 to 2003,when he resigned after being convicted on federal felony corruption charges. In 2015,Ganim mounted a successful political comeback and was again elected Bridgeport mayor. Ganim was sworn in as mayor on December 1,2015. Ganim has twice unsuccessfully sought the Democratic nomination for governor of Connecticut,running in 1994 and 2018.
Mary Chapar Moran was an American politician who served as mayor of Bridgeport,Connecticut from 1989 to 1991. She is the first and only woman to be mayor of Bridgeport to date. A member of the Republican Party,Moran ran in 1989 and defeated incumbent mayor Thomas W. Bucci flipping Bridgeport's leadership from Democrat to Republican. Her victory was considered an upset as Bridgeport was heavily Democratic. She served for one term,before being defeated by Joe Ganim thus returning Bridgeport back to Democratic leadership. Her tenure was extremely unpopular exclusively due to her decision to file for municipal bankruptcy for the City Of Bridgeport,which the U.S. bankruptcy court ultimately rejected.
Thomas William Bucci is an American lawyer and former mayor of Bridgeport,Connecticut. A member of the Democratic Party,Bucci ran in 1985 and defeated incumbent mayor Leonard S. Paoletta flipping Bridgeport's leadership from Republican to Democratic. Bucci served two terms in office until he was defeated and succeeded by Mary C. Moran thus returning Bridgeport back to Republican leadership.
The 1982 United States Senate election in Connecticut took place on November 2,1982. Incumbent Republican U.S. Senator Lowell Weicker won re-election to a third term. He first defeated a challenge from Republican Prescott Bush Jr.,the brother of Vice President George H. W. Bush and son of former Senator Prescott Bush,and then won the general election against Democratic U.S. Representative Toby Moffett.
John C. Mandanici Sr. was an American politician who served three terms as the mayor of Bridgeport,Connecticut,the largest city in the U.S. state of Connecticut.
The 2018 Connecticut gubernatorial election took place on November 6,2018,to elect the next governor and lieutenant governor of Connecticut,concurrently with the election of Connecticut's Class I U.S. Senate seat,as well as other elections to the United States Senate in other states,elections to the United States House of Representatives,and various state and local elections. This race's Democratic margin of victory was the closest to the national average of 3.1 points.
The 1981 Burlington mayoral election was held March 3,1981. Bernie Sanders,who ran as an independent candidate,defeated incumbent Democratic Mayor Gordon Paquette,who was seeking a sixth term as Mayor of Burlington,Vermont,and Richard Bove.
Thirman L. Milner is an American politician from Hartford,Connecticut. A Democrat,he served as the 62nd Mayor of Hartford from 1981 to 1987 and was the first popularly elected black mayor in New England.
Elections are currently held every four years to elect the mayor of Hartford,Connecticut.
Russell Lee "Rusty" Post Jr. was an American politician.
Bridgeport,Connecticut,held an election for mayor in 2023 and 2024. The original general election was held on November 7,2023,with incumbent Joseph Ganim winning re-election. However,a state judge struck down the results of the September 12 Democratic primary due to evidence of election fraud and ordered a new primary scheduled for January 23,2024. Ganim won this primary and was re-elected as mayor on February 27,2024.