Following Storm Recovery, Voters Go With What's Familiar

Democrats celebrated at their headquarters at the Union Street Tavern Tuesday night after voters voiced their confidence in democrats' ability to guide Windsor through changing times.

Ballots cast were reassurance that residents are satisfied with the job a democratic town council and board of education have done over the years, said Deputy Mayor Al Simon (D), who received the second highest vote total Tuesday.

Democrats were particularly pleased with votes received in parts of town that typically vote for republicans.

"We usually lose in the north [of Windsor]. We held our own up there," said Simon, pointing out that no republican candidate received more votes than a single democratic candidate for council — something Simon said he hasn't seen in several elections.

One event working in the democrats' favor, they said Tuesday, was October's snowstorm that left 100 percent of Windsor without power.

"The storm threw our campaign for a loop," said Bill Herzfeld (D), who received the third-highest vote total among council candidates. "But the way the town handled the response was a case in point, [proving how well government has been run]."

"Had we privatized the Department of Public Works, had we cut back on services, had we cut town staff, the town wouldn't have been able to provide what residents needed [after the storm]. You need people to do those jobs, and the crisis proved that," Herzfeld said.

Both the council and board of education are full of familiar faces who have worked to make Windsor go for years. There are a couple of fresh faces in the mix as well, including democrat Jody Terranova.

Terranova, a pediatrician with the UConn Health Center, said Tuesday night that she's excited to get to work on the big changes in Windsor, including the closing of the town's Landfill, the development of Great Pond Village and the development of the high-speed rail line.

Of paramount importance to managing those large changes is maintaining Windsor's small-town feel while "changing with the times," Terranova said.

Pending a recount of votes on Friday, Lisa Boccia (R) will be another fresh face on the council, running on a platform of frustration with the previous council's priorities.

Windsor residents have fallen on hard times, she said during Meet the Candidates Night in October, and the council is discussing "the death penalty and goldfish sales at the Shad Derby."

Boccia was separated by Ron Eleveld, the low republican vote-getter on Tuesday, by just four votes.

Eleveld, who would be replaced by Boccia based on current vote tallies and served on the council from 2007-11, said his low vote tally may have been affected by ballot placement.

Eleveld's name was in the last place of five republican candidates on the ballot.

"You're allowed five votes," Eleveld explained Tuesday after election results were reported, "Trinks is popular, Jepsen is popular, and by the time you get further down the line, you don't have any votes left."

"Democrats," Eleveld added, "voted party line. Republicans split the vote because they voted for candidates."

The highest vote-getter for republican town council candidates was Don Jepsen, who received 1,684 votes.

The Democrats, who ran on their "Vote Row A" slogan, received 54.8 percent of the town council vote, with the lowest vote-getting democratic candidate, Randy McKenney, receiving 1,734 votes.

18 percent of Windsor's more than 19,000 registered voters turned out, including 144 absentee ballots cast.