Dan Malloy: The only gubernatorial candidate close to qualifying for public financing A byproduct of the John G. Rowland corruption scandal is that candidates who raise $250,000 in small amounts can qualify for $4.25 million in public financing to run for governor. But the Citizens’ Election Program, passed a year after Rowland’s resignation in 2004, […]

Mark Pazniokas
Mark is the Capitol Bureau Chief and a co-founder of CT Mirror. He is a frequent contributor to WNPR, a former state politics writer for The Hartford Courant and Journal Inquirer, and contributor for The New York Times.
McMahon invests another $8 million in her Senate campaign
Republican candidate Linda McMahon has pumped another $8 million into her U.S. Senate campaign, bringing her personal investment in the race to about $14.5 million. Her latest contribution, which will be listed as a loan in her official filing, is listed in a brief summary of her fundraising for the first three months of 2010 […]
Testimony ends in Bysiewcz qualification case
A Superior Court judge refused to rule Thursday that Secretary of the State Susan Bysiewicz was unqualified to run for attorney general, reserving judgment until after final arguments next week. Judge Michael R. Sheldon rejected a motion by the Republican Party that Bysiewicz, a Democrat, had failed to prove she met the minimum statutory requirements […]
A day after mismanagement charges, DCF seeks end of court oversight
Accused of gross mismanagement one day, the state Department of Children and Families responded the next by asking a judge to end 18 years of court oversight, citing “monumental and sustained improvements.” “The timing is nothing short of astonishing,” said Sarah Eagan, who has closely followed the case as the director of the Child Abuse […]
A cross-examination by the GOP
Under oath and in open court, the Democratic front-runner for attorney general was roughly cross-examined Wednesday about her qualifications by a lawyer for the Connecticut Republican Party. Secretary of the State Susan Bysiewicz invited the novel interrogation by asking a Hartford Superior Court judge in February to rule on whether she has the necessary 10 […]
Simmons goes after McMahon over allegations from 1989 steroids probe
Rob Simmons demanded Monday that Linda McMahon, his rival for the Republican nomination to the U.S. Senate, explain why she appeared to direct an employee to tip off the target of a steroids investigation in 1989. In a press conference on the north steps of the State Capitol, Simmons delivered his harshest criticism to date […]
Lamont, Foley top fundraising for quarter
Democratic gubernatorial candidate Ned Lamont reported Monday that he raised $342,000 in the quarter ending March 31, matching the Republican front-runner, Tom Foley. The two Greenwich businessmen have opted out of the state’s public financing system and are raising money privately. Each can afford to also use their own money in the race. Neither candidate’s […]
DCF seeks end to court oversight, one day after accusation of mismanagement
The state filed a motion today asking a federal judge to end court oversight of the Department of Children and Families, citing dramatic progress protecting children since the case was filed 20 years ago. The move comes one day after a child-advocacy group notified the state that DCF is so badly managed that it is […]
One last turn at the microphone for Chris Dodd
He first attended the dinner as a child, tagging along with his father to see the likes of Jack Kennedy and Hubert Humphrey. On Monday night, U.S. Sen. Christopher J. Dodd stood before a Jefferson-Jackson-Bailey Dinner for the last time as an elected official. “This evening obviously is bittersweet,” Dodd told a crowd of more […]
Lieberman on climate change, political and otherwise: ‘I’m just being me’
With a close Republican ally and a liberal Democrat who campaigned for his defeat in 2006, independent Sen. Joseph I. Lieberman expects to introduce revised climate-change legislation next week. “My guess is we don’t take it up in the Senate until sometime in June, but I think we have a real shot at it,” Lieberman […]
Foley says he has $1.5 million on hand as candidates start to meet today’s finance deadline
Republican gubernatorial candidate Tom Foley issued a statement today that he raised $338,810 in the first quarter and has $1.5 million on hand, but his report wasn’t yet available on the state web site. Oz Griebel, another Republican, said last week he had raised $300,000 and had $250,000 on hand. All candidates must file their […]
Iraq vet launches GOP challenge in 1st CD
Republican Mark Zydanowicz, a businessman and National Guard veteran of Iraq, announced his candidacy today for the 1st Congressional District seat held by Democrat John B. Larson. With his first run for elective office, Zydanowicz is taking on a six-term incumbent in an overwhelmingly Democratic district that covers Hartford and 26 other communities. “I know […]
DCF under fire again in ‘Juan F.’ case
A national advocacy group notified Connecticut on Monday that it once again is in contempt of federal court orders dictating the state’s treatment of vulnerable children. Children’s Rights, which represents children in a class-action suit filed against the state in 1989, suggested that the only remedy might be new management at the Department of Children […]
Figueroa to go from ‘explorer’ to candidate
Democrat Juan Figueroa said Sunday he will end his exploratory campaign and become a declared candidate for governor by the end of the month. “I feel good about what we have been able to put together,” said Figueroa, who intends to bypass the Democratic convention and qualify for a primary by petitioning. Figueroa said he […]
A month later, candidate Blumenthal finds his voice
Richard Blumenthal showed signs of finding his voice Thursday as a candidate for U.S. Senate by answering the question that flummoxed him a month ago: As a crusading attorney general for nearly 20 years, has he been bad for business, discouraging investment and fueling unemployment? Standing at a forum sponsored by some of the companies […]