Two prominent Fairfield County personalities, an elected official and a former corporate and nonprofit executive, have launched their respective quests to become Connecticut”™s next governor.
Danbury Mayor Mark Boughton, who was re-elected to his ninth term in November, announced his pursuit of the Republican nomination for governor. Guy Smith, a former executive vice president at Norwalk-based Diageo, announced his bid for the Democratic nomination.
This is Boughton”™s third attempt at statewide office: he ran for lieutenant governor in 2010 on a ticket with Greenwich businessman Tom Foley and unsuccessfully sought the Republican nomination for governor in 2014.
“I am running for governor to turn our state around,” Boughton said. “Connecticut needs to be a place where people want to live, play and work, rather than leave as was the case not so long ago. The time for partisan bickering at the cost of success for Connecticut’s residents is over. By phasing out the state income tax, reducing arduous anti-job regulations and working together with people across the political spectrum, we will turn Connecticut’s future around.”
Smith, a Greenwich resident, who is also a former vice chairman of the Stamford nonprofit AmeriCares, had never run for public office. However, from 1998 to 1999 he was a special adviser on President Bill Clinton”™s impeachment defense team and in 2016 a special adviser on radio media outreach for Hillary Clinton”™s presidential campaign.
“Frankly, the governing class in Connecticut has let our people down,” Smith said. “I am not part of the governing class. I am running for governor to get Connecticut”™s economy moving again, to create jobs and to make Connecticut work for everyone. My campaign is about growth and job creation, protecting the interests of Connecticut”™s families and declaring that Connecticut is back in business. I”™m asking every citizen today to join the cause and together we will be successful.”
