Reading & Write-Ins In Easton Politics

Easton Republican Party leaders sent out an email Thursday touting their slate and taking aim at write-in candidates Val and Derek Buckley after the couple's failed bid to be on the ballot as Easton Coalition candidates in this year's municipal election.

"Recently, the current Town Clerk, W. Derek Buckley as well as his wife, Senior Center Director, Valerie Buckley, filed paperwork to form the Easton Coalition party," the press release says. "Their application was deemed insufficient by the Secretary of State as it did not comply with new and explicit instructions issued to all town clerks in 2011.

"They sought to overturn state election laws by bringing a lawsuit against the Town of Easton, the Easton Town Clerk and the Connecticut Secretary of State. This caused an ironic situation where W. Derek Buckley of the Easton Coalition was suing W. Derek Buckley, the Town Clerk of Easton. The Connecticut Superior Court ruled in favor of the defendant, the Secretary of State, and denied their motion to be on the ballot. See link to the Easton Courier."

"I didn't sue anybody," Derek Buckley said in his town hall office Thursday. "And nobody sued me. If he [Republican First Selectman candidate and RTC Chairman Adam Dunsby] sees the lawsuit, that has nothing to do with me. Adam should read properly and stop spreading false stories."

Buckley also stressed how in all of the ballot disputes going on in the state of Connecticut, the Easton Republican Party is the only one to go to court in support of keeping candidates off the ballot.

"To me, that's reprehensible," he said.

Dunsby is running against Buckley's wife Val for first selectman and the RTC press release also issued a challenge to her.

"The voters are entitled to know whether Ms. Buckley intends to remain in her full-time salaried and benefitted position, if, as a potential write-in candidate, she is elected First Selectman," it reads. "The latter is also a salaried office which requires at least twenty-five hours per week. Adam Dunsby has indicated that he plans on leaving his investment firm at the end of the year and will resign as chair of the Easton Board of Education to devote the demanding time necessary in this high office."

"Adam has to clarify this," Derek Buckley said. "Is he going to give up his income or just his job? He owns his company."

Val Buckley reminded Dunsby that she sent out a town wide mailing telling voters she would step aside as Easton Senior Center director if elected. "I'm surprised he doesn't read his mail," she said.

But then Buckley said that she, her husband and fellow write-in candidates Randy Shapiro (town treasurer) and Shaun Malay (Board of Education) do not want to get into a back and forth with town Republican candidates.

"The whole coalition team are not the type of people to go around name calling," she said. "The reason why we're running for office is to stop this embarrassment to the town. It's time to take a broom and sweep all of this dirt from the area completely. If all of the time spent name calling was spent constructively, building the community, life would be so much easier and so much more of a benefit to the residents."

'Best Small Town in CT'

The rest of the RTC press release promotes the positives in Easton and asks voters to elect Republican candidates to office to continue to build upon it:

In sharp contrast to the increased taxes and “out of control” spending in Hartford and the outright political disarray in Washington, the Easton Republican Party’s elected and appointed officials have kept tax increases low and our credit rating high at “AAA”, without sacrificing important budget items such as education, public safety, environmental preservation and enhanced financial aid for many seniors to stay in their homes.

Your vote for Adam Dunsby as First Selectman, Scott Centrella for Selectman, Christine Halloran for Town Clerk and the rest of the team will insure a continuation of these accomplishments and will send a clear message that you demand a professional and civil level of public discourse to discuss our issues.
Easton has been voted Connecticut Magazine’s “Best Small Town in Connecticut” for the last four years — and for good reasons. With your support, the Republican slate of candidates will continue to focus on the really important tasks - keeping taxes down, providing a high standards of public education, protecting the special character of our Town, while enhancing the quality of life for our Senior residents — all in a courteous, transparent and professional manner becoming our special town.