The incumbent City Treasurer, Christine Bourne, was passed over for the nomination to be the Democratic candidate for the office she has held for 16 years. Bourne says the Democratic Town Committee leadership decided to punish her for "speaking out against the [Democratically controlled] Board of Education. ... They do not want strong people who speak out."
Bourne found herself at the center of one of the most contentious disputes between the Superintendent of Schools and Mayor Seb Giuliano. Bourne worked for the school system since 1994, and was the payroll supervisor there when a dispute over payroll erupted. She was locked out of her office after being accused of a breach of confidentiality by the Superintendent's office, and reportedly assaulted by the Board of Education business manager when she did not leave the building.
Bourne said that the Democratically controlled Council did not follow through on the audit of the school's finances, which they commissioned, and nobody asked her for her perspective on the dispute, "Not one person called me. Through this whole process."
I asked Bourne about reports that she had supported Giuliano two years ago. She said that she was a "dedicated Democratic town person." She has the credentials to back that up. At the nominating convention last year for State Representatives, she seconded the nomination of Joe Serra, recalling how her grandmother worked with him in the Public Works Department. She has served for 5 years as Middletown's representative on the Democratic State Central Committee, and organized the Democratic Town Committee picnic, "I've been a strong Democrat all my life."
Bourne said that she did not share the acrimony towards Giuliano that many Democratic leaders have, "I'm not Seb's enemy, like they are."
Bourne said she had learned that after she put in her letter expressing her desire to be again nominated for City Treasurer, Town Committee chair Lisa Santangelo counseled the nominating committee against her. Quentin Phipps, currently chair of Planning and Zoning, received the nomination. Santangelo confirmed to me that Phipps had originally applied to the Town Committee to be nominated for a seat on Common Council.
Bourne says that she will be challenging one of the nominated candidates in a primary, but has not decided whom, "I will definitely be placing my name in for office." She ruled out the Board of Education, expressing her support for the turnover among the Democratic candidates, and the five new nominees.
She would not rule out challenging for the Mayoral nomination. She noted that she had always won elections, and frequently with the most votes of any candidate on the ballot. Bourne said that there were several people who were considering joining her in a primary challenge.
State law specifies how a candidate can force a primary election to wrest the nomination from a party-endorsed candidate: he or she must submit a nominating petition signed by "at least one percent of the votes cast for the same office at the last preceding election for such office ..." 8,152 votes were cast in the mayoral race in 2009, so Bourne would need to obtain 82 valid signatures to force a primary election for the mayoral nomination.
Bourne was angry and hurt by the attitude of the Democratic Town Leadership, "You're not allowed to speak out of turn any more." But she also exuded confidence, "To me it's about doing the right thing."
The Middletown Democratic Town Committee's nominating committee for the municipal election this November was composed of eleven democrats from all walks of life and experiences. Seven of these members were present to interview Ms. Bourne. To imply that these intelligent, hard working individuals could have been influenced by one person is ridiculous. What I conveyed to the committee after Ms. Bourne's interview was my concern that "she had been suspended from her BOE position after allegedly releasing confidential payroll codes". This was reported in the Middletown Press on April 23, 2011 and I believe in the Eye as well. For some committee members, this was not new information. My question to them was - is this appropriate for a person elected to be Treasurer of our City? As with any interview, it was up to Ms. Bourne to convince those interviewing her, that she should be selected for that position. As can be seen by the committee's selection, she did not.
ReplyDeleteMs. Bourne's allegation that there is an attempt to "punish" her is false. She asked to be interviewed as Treasurer and she was. Our selected candidate for treasurer, Quentin Phipps comes to the job with intellect, communication skills and a banking career. He will be able to hit the ground running when it comes to serving our residents in the many aspects of the Treasurer's job.
As can be seen by the committees selection of Ed McKeon for the BOE, the committee was looking qualified candidates and not shy about selecting those who have not always seen eye to eye with them. Quentin Phipps is an excellent candidate and will serve this City well as our Treasurer.
It is hard to work up the sympathy for Chris Bourne that she is seeking. She gave out confidential payroll codes and in most places, that would be grounds for dismissal. Instead, she gets moved to a new job and gets a raise. She should thank her lucky stars she is still employed instead of playing the victim.
ReplyDeleteQuentin Phipps should have been given a crack at being a council person- he is a loyal Dem, a smart person, and hard working. I wonder what really happened and why he was snubbed. He did a wonderful job as p&z chair. Being a gentleman I am sure he will take the nominee for treasurer in stride and not say anything, but myself not being a gentleman will speak up- He was snubbed and its a shame- he would have made a great councilman!
ReplyDeleteThe article does not imply that one person tried to influence the proceedings. It says that Ms. Bourne told the reporter that is what happened. Read it again. "Bourne said she had learned that after she put in her letter ... Town Committee chair Lisa Santangelo counseled the nominating committee against her"
ReplyDeleteYou still may not agree that is what really happened, but there is a difference between making implications and reporting what was told by a source. Likely only a couple people know and will ever know the real truth.
Again it's stated that Ms. Bourne gave out "confidential payroll codes". What exactly are "confidential payroll codes"? The BOE's budget is a public document and the their payroll is subject to FOI rules; nothing should be hidden. If Ms. Bourne gave "confidential payroll codes" to the CITY, what is the issue????? I don't get what the problem is. What are they hiding?
ReplyDelete