Shelton Alderman Jason Perillo won the special election to fill the legislative seat of the late Republican Representative Richard Belden, who died in August.
Perillo, a 30-year-old Republican, garnered 65 percent of the vote to beat Democrat James Orazietti. State Republican Chairman Chris Healy reported the vote margin at 2,085 for Perillo and 1,146 for the 51-year-old Orazietti, a member of the school board.
Belden died suddenly on Aug. 20 and had represented the Shelton area for more than 30 years.
Healy said Perillo already was in the process of an aggressive door-to-door campaign in his aldermanic race when Belden died.
“He had a lot of energy. He not only ran a good campaign but his idea of smaller government less taxes resonated with voters,” Healy said.
Both candidates were the first in the state to take advantage of the Citizens Election Program, the new state publicly financed campaign fund. Citizens, businesses, organizations and political action committees can contribute directly to the fund. Candidates who receive money under the public financing system must donate surplus funds back to the fund.
Perillo and Orazietti both were able to qualify for matching funds from the program. Healy said that although the seat had been held by a Republican for three decades, there was no guarantee of a GOP win.
“There’s no given in a special election since both sides had the same financial resources,” Healy said.
Perillo was surrounded by supporters and Belden’s widow, Bert, at the local Republican Headquarters after the results were tallied.
“Everyone was so involved in this right from the start,” Perillo told the Connecticut Post. But He said the circumstances that led the election were difficult.
“We lost a friend, a very dear friend,” Perillo said. “We did it for Dick and we did it for Bert.”
