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It looks like Connecticut State Senator Bob Duff (D) finally has some competition to face in November for a seat he has held ever since 2005.
Republican Martin Tagliaferro announced his candidacy to be the next State Senator for Norwalk and Darien, and unlike Duff, Tagliaferro has not spent his life in politics.
He started out life as an engineer and bridge designer before moving into construction management, where he oversaw a range of activities, such as preparing construction contracts, dealing with claims and changes, dispute resolution, and all of the various challenges encountered in major construction projects.
Not just any kind of projects, but bridges, railroads, tunnels and highways -- nearly $8B of projects, including not just one but five "once in a lifetime" projects.
But like many people who are looking at what's going on in our state and country right now, Tagliaferro recognized that the ideas coming from the Senate Majority Leader and his fellow Democrats are radically wrong, so he decided to roll up his sleeves and get into the race.
Sure, it might be an uphill battle to take on an incumbent like Duff, who has served as Senate Majority Leader since 2015, but Tagliaferro says he has a large following, especially among the 40% of voters in his district whom Duff openly despises.
All it takes is a few minutes cruising through the Senator's social media feed on X before you realize just how much Bob Duff really hates certain groups of his constituents, like Republicans and anyone opposed to covid vaccines, for instance.
In fact Duff has no problem attacking his constituents on social media, like the time he mocked parents who wanted to preserve the religious exemption to childhood vaccination in Connecticut.
Not Tagliaferro, he's a problem solver who believes that reasonable people can find reasonable solutions to any problem. It's a lesson he's learned after spending thirty years in construction, managing high profile, federally-funded and designated mega-projects.
The way Tagliaferro sees it, an unresolved problem is a waste of time, money and resources.
But rather than solving those problems, Democrats have allowed the problems to fester and then use them as fundraising opportunities and ways to attack and demonize Republicans, just like they have done with the Eversource billing issue.
By the way, there were more than 7 people at that Eversource rally, but considering the rally took place in the middle of a work day, many people were busy at work, trying to earn enough money to cover their new public benefits charge.
Tagliaferro says he's also concerned about the continued expansion of new apartment buildings that often happens without making the necessary improvements to the town's infrastructure -- the schools, the electric grid, the roads, etc.
"We have lost focus on what we want to be as a town," laments Tagliaferro who is a believer in small, limited government with powers vested locally "because insiders know best what is best for their cities and towns."
Meanwhile his opponent, Duff, seems more interested in what's happening in Hartford and Bridgeport than what is going on in the towns of Norwalk and Darien that he is meant to represent.
Duff seems to have a different vision for the purpose of government than Tagliaferro.
A fan of Milton Friedman, Tagliaferro believes that free market capitalism has fed more children, generated more wealth, created more jobs and gotten more people out of poverty than any number of government programs.
"The government does not make more money by raising taxes. It can make more money by lowering taxes and expanding the workforce," explains Tagliaferro who thinks government spending has gotten out of control. He thinks there are ample opportunities to improve efficiencies and lower government spending.
We also talked about Trump, the topic that seems taboo to many politicians in Connecticut.
"He lives rent free in the heads of way too many people," joked Tagliaferro who is most interested in policies that impact the people in his own district.
"While what happens in Washington is important, it wasn't Trump that banned gas-powered leaf blowers, ran your school board or inflated your electric bill," said Tagliaferro.
"I believe the American taxpayer is the most talked about and least represented group in the country," said Tagliaferro, and he intends to fix that, at least for the people of Norwalk and Darien in his district.
For more information about Martin Tagliaferro's campaign, he can be reached at [email protected]
Go Tag! You're facing the right direction on all the issues.