Women’s groups think they’ve found a formidable female candidate they hope will replace retiring Sen. Joe Lieberman in the Senate. As a veteran of Connecticut politics and an able campaigner, Susan Bysiewicz has everything they desire in a candidate. Next November is a make or break moment for women in the Senate with fully half the women in the Senate up for re-election. Women’s advocates are hoping to retain incumbents and even grow their numbers with candidates like Bysiewicz.
But the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee is backing a different candidate, Rep. Chris Murphy. Headed by Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), the DSCC knows that women’s representation is an issue but still prefers Murphy.
One reason is that Murphy is an exemplary candidate. His fundraising figures and poll numbers trump the other contenders, though Bysiewicz isn’t down by a lot in the polls, and her fundraising numbers exhibit potential with the latest showing her at 1.25 million compared to Murphy’s $2.66 million.
At a sit-down with the press on December 6, flanked by three female Senate recruits, Sen. Murray said of the Connecticut race: “When we go out to talk to people in states, we look at who is the strongest candidate, who can win, who has the strongest support. And in that state Chris Murphy is just a great candidate and I expect him to win.” In response, Bysiewicz’s campaign manager told Politico, “We have no problem not being accepted by the party…If you look at Susan’s record she has never been a favorite of insiders in Hartford either. It is because she has taken on tough fights.”
These two statements sum up the problem with Susan Bysiewicz more accurately than talking points usually do. She is not a favorite of Harford insiders’ despite spending almost 20 years in Connecticut politics as a state representative and then Secretary of State, a fact that is clear from the sparse number of endorsements on her website, though it does boast the support of EMILY’s List, the National Organization for Women, and the National Women’s Political Caucus. Murphy’s, on the other hand, is replete with endorsements from state representatives and other Democratic party figures.
The best explanation is that Bysiewicz is coming out of a rough patch in her career and many fear her electability has taken a hit. In 2010, Bysiewicz, then the secretary of state, dropped her bid for the governorship to run for attorney general instead, upsetting supporters. Many assumed she would immediately begin a Senate run even if she became attorney general.
“I think that her ambition is, she wears it right on her sleeve, always has,” says Kevin Rennie, who served in the house with Susan as a Republican but now observes Connecticut politics as a blogger and columnist.
The real trouble for Bysiewicz began after she began her campaign for attorney general. Due to a technical active-practice requirement in Connecticut, Bysiewicz, a lawyer, didn’t qualify for the job. Because in her capacity as Secretary of State Bysiewicz oversaw elections, she was forced essentially to sue her own office in order to be able to run. The state supreme court eventually disqualified her. During this whole time, Bysiewicz was forced to sit for a series of taped depositions that were not flattering to the candidate.
“It was a kind of drama we just don’t often see in Connecticut politics,” says Rennie. If she won the primary against Murphy in August, Republicans would certainly trot out the footage from those depositions and use them against her.
But 2010 wasn’t the first time Connecticut Democrats have been dismayed with Bysiewitcz. In 1998, she ran a primary campaign against state rep. Ellen Scalettar for the Democratic nomination for Secretary of State, the seat Bysiewicz went on to win and hold until last year. During the primary, Bysiewicz ran a series of negative ads against Scalettar, including a nasty ad painting Scalettar as an apologist for sex offenders.
“Because that was her debut in statewide candidate, it made an impression that has lasted a lot longer than one campaign usually does,” says Rennie. “[there’s] still a significant number of party activists who remember that campaign.”
As a candidate, Bysiewicz is known as a fierce campaigner who knows how to work a room. But in debates with other candidates, she wavers. Rennie noted that she began to avoid forums with the two other candidates during her brief run for governor in 2005 — apparently because she couldn’t speak fluently on policy issues.
Outside of Hartford, her efforts have paid off. She’s popular in lots of small towns where she makes a point to visit often. And even though she’s a Democrat, she comes off on the conservative side and appeals to some Republicans and independents — something that could serve her well in a general election.
“I like her very much, I would vote for her personally,” says Paul Coutu, a radio-host in North East corner of the state, adding that he does not make endorsements. “Support in this area is pretty good…people do not speak badly of her.” Noting that she is less popular in Hartford, he added, “[Murphy] has the insiders’ endorsements but I’m not sure why. I’m not an insider.”
Coutu notes that Bysiewicz has appeared on his radio station more than the other candidates. This makes sense. During the lawsuit, explains Rennie, her schedule came out, revealing that she spent a significant amount of time going to town committee meetings throughout the state. Conversely, Bysiewicz boasts of the time she has spent traversing the state. This strategy has made her popular with the party outside the capital, splitting the party.
Though Bysiewicz is unlikely to get the nomination at the state’s Spring nominating convention, she could force a primary vote in August. A third candidate, William Tong, was polling at 1 percent in an October poll.
“It was a rough election season for her last year, she just pivoted multiple times on what she was running for,” said state senator Beth Bye, who endorsed Murphy and stresses how impressive Murphy is as a candidate. “It was really hard for me not being with the woman candidate. I think we really need more women.”
