Members of the Woodbridge Democratic Town Committee gathered Thursday evening in the Senior Center Cafeteria to hear candidates and their representatives talk about the upcoming election.

Former First Selectwoman Nan Birdwhistell started off by talking about upcoming events where independent and undecided voters would have the opportunity to meet Democratic Gubernatorial candidate, Dan Malloy.

She was followed by Secretary of the State candidate Denise Merrill. Majority Leader Merrill spoke about how this year, Democrats have the strongest ticket for state office that they have had in years, and that while there might be an enthusiasm gap nationwide, Democrats in Connecticut have much more to be enthusiastic about than Republicans in Connecticut.

As a Secretary of the State Candidate, Majority Leader Merrill is particularly concerned about voter turnout. However, she feels that the doom and gloom about low voter turnout in the recent primaries, while bad, is not significantly different than in previous elections. She noted that the past couple of primary cycles have been exceptional, and the primary cycle most similar to this year was the 2004 primary cycle when the primaries were held in September and were also particularly low.

She spoke about how currently there is a great distrust of all the institutions of our daily lives; government, business, and religious. This often translates to low voter turnout and needs to be addressed.

One of the most important things is to try and stay away from the negative advertising that is so disenchanting the electorate. She noted that she has received considerable praise for her positive ad about getting things done as a PTA member and bringing that can do, get it done attitude to all aspects of life.

Yet with lots of money floating around in the election, especially with the $30 million that Linda McMahon is spending compared to the $9 million that Attorney General Blumenthal currently has available, we can expect a lot of negative advertising coming out in the final days of the election cycle. Yet in spite of all the negativity, when people get to the voting booth she believes they will vote for experience, the sort of experience that she, and the rest of the Democratic ticket bring.

The problem is to get people to the voting booth. One important initiative is the ninetieth anniversary of the 19th Amendment, which gave women the right to vote. Ms. Merrill spoke about how people died for that right, and we have a responsibility to honor that right. She also spoke about campaigning the old fashioned way, of reaching out to families, friends and neighbors instead of relying on impersonal robocalls and television advertisements.

Majority Leader Merrill was followed by State Senator Joe Crisco. Senator Crisco thanked the people of Woodbridge for helping him qualify for the Citizens Election Program. He also spoke about getting back to the basics of getting out the vote.

Sen. Crisco spoke about various recognitions he and teams he has been on have recently received for work on breast cancer, autism and childhood domestic abuse. He did note that the national average for Autism in the United States is 1 in 150, but in Connecticut it is 1 in 100.

Sen Crisco was followed by Jacqueline Kozin. Ms. Kozin is the campaign manager for Kevin Lembo, who is running for State Comptroller. Mr. Lembo could not attend the meeting because of the Hartford Votes Candidate Forum.

Ms Kozin spoke about Mr. Lembo's experience as Connecticut's Healthcare Adovcate, where he has won major battles for people fighting for their health care. She noted that the Comptroller's office overseas the purchase of healthcare, a large part of the state budget, and that Mr. Lembo has ideas about how to streamline it.

She also spoke about his commitment to transparency and getting more of the Comptroller's data online. This will also lead to greater efficiency.

Patrick O'Sullivan, the town clerk from Orange was also in attendance and he spoke about the coordinated campaign running out of New Haven for Dan Malloy and others on the ticket.

The final candidate to speak with was Josh Hershmann. Mr. Hershmann is running a spirited traditional campaign for State Representative. He has been busy going door to door gathering support and attending many different events to meet the voters.

After the candidates spoke, Woodbridge First Selectman Ed Sheehy gave a brief update on what is happening in town. He mentioned that the new librarian has started at the town library, that the Department of Transportation has started studying the traffic issues on Amity Road and Litchfield Turnpike, that the first phase of restoration of the old firehouse is 99% complete and that the town director of finance and operations has won another award for excellence in financial reporting. Mr. Sheehy also touched briefly on the bidding to operate or own the Country Club of Woodbridge.

Other reports included a mention of the departure of Principal Mary Lou Torres from Beecher Road School, the great CMT report from Beecher Road, and a discussion about sign regulations.

Members of the Democratic Town Committee left the meeting better informed about the candidates and what is going on in town. With this increased knowledge came an increased commitment to work harder for the town of Woodbridge and for the candidates that they support.

Note: This was originally posted at the Woodbridge Citizen. The longer version, with this note will also appear on various newspaper websites, and DeliberateCT.

I strongly encourage more people to attend town political committee meetings as well as other town meetings and share their experiences online so that we can all get a better understanding of what is going on politically in our towns.

That said, I do apologize for the poor quality of the photographs. They were taken with my cellphone from a distance. While I look like better quality photographs, I believe this also illustrates the value that any one can bring to coverage of local meetings.