"I only have to win by one vote"
| Breaking News Updated 10:19 p.m., Tuesday, Aug. 12 The Greenwich Post By Ken Borsuk kborsuk@greenwich-post.com As predicted, the Democratic primary contest between Greenwich residents Jim Himes and Lee Whitnum wasn’t much of a contest at all as Mr. Himes won handily Tuesday night. According to totals Tuesday night, Mr. Himes bested Ms. Whitnum 90% to 10%. In Greenwich, Mr. Himes received 1,079 votes to 74 for Ms. Whitnum, including absentee ballots.... ....Political observers consider Mr. Himes the Democrats’ best shot to unseat Mr. Shays, who has been in office for more than 20 years. Mr. Himes has already set fund-raising records among opponents of Mr. Shays.... ...Although Ms. Whitnum enjoyed her experiences on the campaign trail, she did admit that it would be nice to not having to worry about “one misstep ending up on the blogosphere.” As for Ms. Whitnum’s supporters, they stood by their candidate, still in admiration of her efforts and passionate for her cause. “It’s about time that someone brings up the real issues of this country,” John McGillion said, an avid proponent of Ms. Whitnum’s campaign. Ms. Whitnum’s strongest support came from Bridgeport where the party ticket was split and party challenger candidates ran very strong campaigns.......Mr. Himes said he was eager to look toward the future and a battle with Mr. Shays. To the sounds of loud cheers from his supporters, Mr. Himes pledged to win in November and work in Congress on the issues that would “restore the American dream for everyone.”.... ...While Ms. Whitnum’s campaign for Congress ended for defeat, her campaign to fight for her beliefs and principles is not over. Ms. Whitnum plans to finish her “controversial” third book that she is currently working on, write a letter to Congress and the Washington Post criticizing her Democratic opponent Jim Himes’s “48-hour AIPEC-sponsored indoctrination trip,” and have a “vacation on my couch with my remote control...my favorite place in the world.” Although she plans to take some time off and lay low for a little while, Ms. Whitnum is not done advocating for what she believes is right. “This race has really opened my eyes to the inner workings of Congress,” Ms. Whitnum told the Post. “I’m disappointed how big a role special interest groups play.” Ms. Whitnum plans to advocate for campaign finance reform in an attempt to “give the power back to the people and not special interest groups,” “Do you think Himes received all of his funding from personal donations?” she asked. “This is a cause I feel strongly about and want to fight for this.” The Greenwich Post Even Has Preliminary Election Results: Greenwich Votes by District
Please Read The Full Greenwich Post Story: UPDATE: THE GREENWICH TIME ELECTION REPORT COMES IN A CLOSE SECOND Himes crushes Whitnum in Democratic primary By Neil Vigdor Greenwich Time Staff Writer Article Launched: 08/12/2008 10:39:56 PM Jim Himes dispatched fellow Democrat Lee Whitnum Tuesday with the ease of an incumbent - not a candidate making his foray into national politics - in the first congressional primary in the 4th District in two decades. Turnout throughout the district, which includes most of Fairfield County and a sliver of New Haven County, was remarkably light. In Greenwich, the hometown of both candidates, just over 14 percent of registered Democrats - some 1,153 - voted Tuesday, local election officials said. The count with all 12 town districts reporting, and including absentee ballots, was 1,079 for Himes and 74 for Whitnum. The lopsided contest, viewed by many of Himes' supporters as a tune-up for the general election, assures the former town party chairman a spot on the November ballot against U.S. Rep. Christopher Shays, R-Conn., in what is shaping up to be a nationally-watched race. Shays, first elected in 1987, was the lone Republican House member in New England to survive the 2006 election. His district is being targeted once again by Democrats looking to seize upon his support of the Iraq war. Official election results from the primary were not available as of press time..... ...."Christopher looks forward to opening a dialogue with his constituents about the important issues facing our district, state and nation," Sean Phillips of the Shays campaign said in a statement. "He introduced a comprehensive, forward-looking energy policy that will help reduce our nation's dependence on foreign oil. He's secured millions of dollars for our cities, train stations and roads. And he's working to help his constituents with the ever-increasing cost of home heating oil. Christopher looks forward to debating these and many other issues this fall." Whitnum, who spent election night at home in Greenwich, said she was proud of her showing in light of the widespread support of the party establishment for Himes. "I think considering what I was up against, it's good," said Whitnum, who, at 9 p.m., said she wanted to have a drink before calling Himes to concede... ...Throughout the campaign, Whitnum has been a highly-controversial figure, drawing a last-minute rebuke from Malloy, the Stamford mayor, for comments she made accusing Himes of pandering to pro-Israel lobbying groups. Malloy, speaking at a news conference Monday at Stamford Government Center, charged Whitnum with being anti-Semitic. Whitnum stood by her comments, saying that politicians' blind support for Israel resembled the decision-making of members of Congress before they voted to invade Iraq. At Himes' victory celebration, Malloy said the primary had its advantages for Himes. "Look, this is a guy who has never run for major office. I think in that sense it was a maturing thing," Malloy said in an interview. State Democratic Chairwoman Nancy DiNardo, who was not in attendance at festivities, called the primary a "trial run" for November. "It just made people aware of the race that much sooner," DiNardo said in a telephone interview... Please Read The Full Greenwich Time Story Update #2 Wednesday August 13, 2008 12:46 AM It Looks Like The Greenwich Citizen Is Not Going To Report On The Huge Jim Himes Victory Maybe The Greenwich Citizen Reporter Got Too Drunk At The Himes Victory Party, Because The Citizen Website Still Is Leading With Last Weeks Story That They Were Bought Out By The Hearst Newspaper Group according to an announcement by the two companies today. "The Connecticut Post has a long and rich history, and Hearst is committed to continuing that tradition," said George B. Irish, president of Hearst Newspapers, in a statement. Hearst also has assumed management of three additional daily newspapers in Fairfield County, Ct. - The Advocate, of Stamford, Greenwich Time and The News-Times of Danbury. The combined circulation of the newspapers is 137,000 daily, 151,000 Sunday and 53,000 weekly. The weeklies that Hearst acquired are the Darien News-Review, Greenwich Citizen...... JUST ABOUT EVERY NEWSPAPER COVERED HIMES VICTORY It Is So Strange That The Greenwich Citizen Was Not Interested. Maybe The Greenwich Citizen Web Site Will Report On The Story Two Or Three Days From Now In Westport, Himes, the party-endorsed candidate, defeated Lee Whitnum 588 to 26, or 95 percent to 5 percent. With more than 6,000 Democrats registered, turnout was a paltry 10.12 percent. Across the district, The Associated Press reported that with 80 percent of the vote counted, Himes had 8,709 votes or 92 percent to Whitnum’s 809 votes or 8 percent. Himes is a former banker and now vice president of a community affordable housing organization Whitnum is a substitute teacher. Both are residents of Greenwich. Tonight, Himes greeted supporters at a Norwalk restaurant and issued a statement saying, “This campaign is about changing Washington. For too long, Washington has listened to big oil and big pharma while ignoring the needs of our families.” He said voters in the fall “will have a choice between the failed policies of the past, and opportunity for the middle class.” Mr. Himes, a Greenwich businessman, received 192 to Lee Whitnum’s 15. Ms. Whitnum, also from Greenwich is a part-time teacher. Early returns indicate Mr. Himes will win hands down. Only 207 of 1,880 eligible Democrat voters turned out, making it a slow day for poll workers at the Community Center. By noon, slightly over 50 voters had come to vote. After not receiving any delegate support at the Democrats’ district nominating convention last spring, Ms. Whitnum got enough voters’ signatures to force the primary, which she had conceded was a long shot to win. Turnout for the summer primary was expected to be low across the district, which includes most of Fairfield County and part of New Haven County. The Democrats’ choice will face Republican Incumbent Christopher Shays of Bridgeport, who is the only New England Republican in the House of Representatives. Mr. Shays has served since 1987. In Redding, Himes garnered 192 votes to Whitnum's 15, and in Ridgefield Himes won 274 votes to Whitnum's 24. Turnout was low in both towns: Redding has 1,880 registered Democrats and Ridgefield 4,367. In Redding, Myrna Robinson has been a registered Democrat for 38 years. Robinson voted for Jim Himes on Tuesday afternoon. "I think it's nice to have an opportunity to vote for a candidate with integrity, values and who seems to be in touch with what's happening in the world," Robinson said. Ginny Collier, also of Redding, has been a registered Democrat for 50 years. She always turns out to vote and gave the nod to Himes Tuesday. "He was endorsed by the party. After Diane Farrell, who I thought was such a good candidate, didn't win (against Shays) in the last election, I thought maybe another woman wouldn't stand a very good chance of winning this year so I voted for Himes.".... With 213 votes from Weston Democrats, Mr. Himes garnered about 95.5% of the vote, while Ms. Whitnum received 10 votes, or 4.5%. Those numbers represent just 11% of Weston’s 1,969 registered Democrats who were eligible to vote. As the polls closed Tuesday night, the numbers appear to be similar thorughout the 4th District, which includes most of Fairfield County and part of New Haven County. For updated results from across the district, visit greenwich-post.com. “It was extremely quiet, unusually slow,” said Diane Loftus, the town’s Democratic registrar and the moderator for Tuesday’s primary. “It’s definitely the lowest turn-out I’ve seen in my six years as registrar.”
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