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Hartford Democrats Elect New Leader

By JENNA CARLESSO

March 22, 2012

HARTFORD —— City Democrats have chosen Marc A. DiBella to lead the town committee.

DiBella, a member from the 4th District, was named chairman by a wide margin. At one point he was opposed by former State Rep. Kenneth Green, but Green withdrew just before the vote, DiBella said.

DiBella was nominated by committee member Angel Arce during a committee meeting last week.

DiBella said that as chairman, he hopes to increase Democratic voter turnout and strengthen the party, whose members outnumber Republicans 18-to-1 in Hartford.

He said Democrats are looking to regain a seat on the board of education that they lost to the Working Families Party.

"Clearly, the Democrats have lost some ground in the city over the last couple of years," DiBella said Thursday. "We have to nominate and elect better candidates. I think that's one of the reasons we've had some voter apathy."

Democrats also elected Luwannia A. Johnson-Martin as vice chairwoman over Gwendolyn V. Bailey. They chose Albi Sako as treasurer, Jay Mullarkey as assistant treasurer, Joshua M. Hall as secretary, and Clorinda Soldevila as sergeant-at-arms.

Republicans last week re-elected Michael McGarry as their town chairman. The group also elected Sweets Wilson as vice chairman, Nyesha McCauley as secretary and Walter Butler as treasurer.

In addition, the party appointed seven more people to the town committee: David Bobowski, Michael Fryar, Jacquelyn Lilly, Russell Williams, McCauley, Butler, and McGarry. McGarry said it is the first time in years he has held a seat on the committee, though he has served as chairman. In Hartford, town committee rules state that the panel's officers do not need to be committee members.

Republicans had only filled 15 of the 19 town committee seats before the new appointments. McGarry said the group added seven people instead of four because it is expanding.