Recently, I was very disheartened to receive a postcard from the Old Lyme Republican Party.
At a time when voters are interested in fact-based strategies for governance, this communication was an unobjective smear campaign against Martha Shoemaker. Rather than listing the items the Republican slate plans to initiate if elected, it was a list of slurs and innuendos aimed at our First Selectwoman.
In a divided nation where objectivity and cooperation are absent from the federal government, a negative communication with no details about the platform is unproductive and divisive. The voters of Old Lyme deserve candid and adult discussions of plans for the next term, not childish smear campaigns.
In an election, the future of local government should be a more productive and mature conversation.
It is hard to ignore the sheer number and strategic placement of the Old Lyme Republican campaign signs this election cycle. When the going gets tough, they even mount them on pickup trucks and dispatch them for maximum impact.
However, one element is conspicuously absent: the word REPUBLICAN. The party name is often missing entirely or relegated to small print, much like a required warning label. Further confusing the issue, many signs prominently feature the color blue, traditionally associated with the Democratic party, with only a small hint of red. This calculated misdirection raises a critical question: Why are local candidates actively hiding their party identity?
In a local election, this confusion is not just a branding choice; it is a vital matter of accountability. It is no surprise that the GOP candidates should try to distance themselves from the Trump administration’s policies: attempts to cut state funding (particularly targeting states like Connecticut), opposition to essential clean-energy projects like Revolution Wind that would support our future electricity needs, cuts to Medicaid, voting suppression and gerrymandering, culture wars terrorizing immigrant and minority communities. But they cannot pretend that the national GOP ideologies do not infect local policies. For example, recall the memory of the Republican-led attack on our library and books two years ago, or the written diatribe from a current GOP candidate for the Board of Education admonishing our school system to prohibit any questioning of gender identity.
Given the clearly adverse impacts of the Trump administration’s policies on Connecticut, voters deserve to know where our local candidates stand. Therefore, I ask each candidate, without spin or evasion: Do you, on the whole, support the policies and leadership of the Trump administration? A simple yes or no answer is required to ensure that voters can make an informed choice. Your silence will be deafening.
I’m writing this letter to serve as a reminder that the Old Lyme Republican Town Committee (RTC) has no problem making stuff up when it serves their purpose of trying to demean an opposing candidate.
In 2023 I was the incumbent candidate for Old Lyme Town Treasurer when nearly identical letters to the editor were submitted to LymeLine on October 16 by Mike Bucior and October 30 by John Flick (endorsed by the RTC for a Board of Finance seat). Each made the statement that as Treasurer I was “remiss in reporting regularly and timely to the Board of Selectmen and the Board of Finance to whom he reports.”
As I pointed out in my response, this statement is completely false. I wrote, “the Treasurer works with the Finance Department, not the Board of Finance. Nor do I report to the Board of Finance or Board of Selectmen either.”
Ultimately, Matt Ward won the election over me to become Town Treasurer. In a review of the 36 Board of Finance meeting minutes posted since Mr. Ward was sworn in, he has only attended one meeting. As I stated, this is not a problem for Mr. Ward because he does not report to the Board of Finance. Yet this does implicate the Old Lyme RTC which told you twice in 2023 that I was failing at my job because I rarely attended Board of Finance meetings.
Clearly the RTC and at least some of its supporters do not campaign on the facts or are woefully uninformed about the roles of town officials. Perhaps they think the public will forgive them or forget after a period of time. However, I have not forgotten and am here to caution you when you decide whom to vote for in November.
The Republican candidate for Old Lyme First Selectman is John Mesham. His running mate is incumbent Selectwoman Jude Danenhower Read (R), who is running again for the same position. Photo submitted.
OLD LYME–This year’s race for Old Lyme First Selectman will be a rematch between incumbent Democrat Martha Shoemaker and Republican John Mesham.
The Republican Town Committee this week announced Mesham’s candidacy as part of a slate of candidates endorsed Tuesday at their new headquarters on Halls Road.
John Mesham
Mesham, a U.S. Marine Corps veteran, retired from the Connecticut State Police in 2020 as a master sergeant after 29 years in law enforcement. He is a member of the Inland Wetlands Commission and a deputy registrar of voters.
The Republicans in a press release described Mesham as an experienced leader with “impeccable integrity” and proven management skills.
“John will also bring much needed ethical standards and transparency back to leadership in Town Hall,” the party said.
The victory in 2023 went to Shoemaker with 51.8% majority. She brought in 1,820 votes compared to Mesham’s 1,697.
Along with Mesham, incumbent Republican Jude Danenhower Read will run for reelection to the three-member Board of Selectmen as they work to reverse the current Democratic majority.
The Republicans said Mesham and Read were instrumental in resisting unpopular initiatives during Shoemaker’s term, including a plan from the Halls Road Improvements Committee to reenvision the commercial strip as a mix of apartments and businesses.
Selectmen late last year voted 2-1, with Read opposed, to send the plan for the Halls Road Overlay District (HROD) to the Zoning Commission. It was rejected in a 4-1 vote by the commission after hours of testimony at a public hearing in front of 550 people, with more waiting in the wings of the Lyme-Old Lyme High School auditorium.
“Together, John and Jude have forged relationships across partisan lines in Old Lyme including open and collaborative relationships with Democrats and unaffiliated voters in our town,” the party said.
Jude Danenhower Read
The Republicans credited Mesham and Read with spearheading opposition “to back door land deals on access to Tantummaheag Landing” as part of a years-long dispute over the ownership of a spit of land bisecting a Tantummaheag Road property. The town going back to previous First Selectman Tim Griswold’s tenure has claimed ownership of the landing amid opposition from the owner, a prominent lawyer and government official with more than a half century of experience, who has signaled his intent to take the case to federal court.
Republican Town Committee Chairman Randy Nixon in an email said a majority of committee members voted to endorse the slate of candidates, which was recommended by its nomination committee.
In response to a request for an interview with Mesham, Nixon said he would have the candidate reach out next week.
The party’s platform includes maintaining the semi-rural character of Old Lyme; fiscal prudence; control over land use decisions in town; resident access to water through town land; high quality education; environmental protection and transparency in town government.
The press release, which directed questions to campaign manager Shaun Mastroianni, emphasized the slate includes Republican and unaffiliated candidates, who were selected based on qualifications rather than party – “all of whom stood firmly and actively against HROD and are concerned about key issues affecting the public.”
Mastroianni moved to Old Lyme in 2023 from Stonington, where he was active in local politics. He ran unsuccessfully last year for the state Senate seat held by Martha Marx, D-New London.
The following candidates were endorsed with Mesham and Read for the November election: (*incumbent)
Town Clerk – Vicki Urbowicz*
Board of Assessment Appeals – Timothy C. Griswold*
Planning Commission – Harold Thompson*, Todd Machnik*
Board of Education – Jarod Bushey, Shaun Mastroianni, Brandy Campbell, Frank Pappalardo
Board of Finance – Matthew Olson*, J. David Kelsey*, John Flick
Board of Finance Alternate – Michael Presti, Maria Corrao Marchant, Bob Antoniac
Zoning Commission – Sloan Danenhower (U), Jane Marsh*
Zoning Board of Appeals – Stephen P. Dix (U)*
Zoning Board of Appeals Alternate – James T. Scott, Jill Pilgrim, Nicholas Fulton
Editor’s Note: The article was updated to correct the vote at the Halls Road zoning meeting and to clarify Nixon’s statement regarding a possible interview with the candidate.
