Foley fends off late charge for GOP win

Rocky Hill - A red check mark appeared next to Tom Foley's name on the television news late Tuesday evening, and the crowd began cheering "Foley! Foley! Foley!"

Some raised their hands. Others whistled. It was almost 11 p.m. and many had waited hours for the Republican race for governor to be called in Foley's favor - ever since his initial 10 percent lead over Lt. Gov. Michael Fedele was cut in half and hovered there.

A jubilant Foley entered the ballroom at the Marriott minutes later to a standing ovation and cheers of "Go, Tom, go!" then thanked Republican voters for choosing him as the nominee.

"I believe in Connecticut," Foley said, standing next to his wife, Leslie. "I know we can get our state headed in the right direction. We need the right leadership, and I will provide that leadership."

"I like his message about economic prosperity," said Tom Simones of Waterford, who was in the front of the cheering group. "It's a realistic message, and we need to have that. We can't keep the status quo."

A former U.S. ambassador and Greenwich businessman, Foley was the longtime frontrunner, but Fedele managed to narrow the gap in the final days of the three-way race that also included R. Nelson "Oz" Griebel, who ran third.

Foley made his acceptance speech with 88 percent of the results in, before supporters gathered in the ballroom decorated with balloons, campaign signs and two large televisions.

"The economy is by far the largest concern of the citizens and voters," Foley said. "The economy turning down has made it clear to people how bankrupt the policies have been in Hartford."

Voters supported his campaign, Foley said, because he was not serving in government, and he "didn't create the problems." Foley said he has the needed problem-solving skills and business savvy, and supporters at the victory party said they appreciate the fact that Foley is a businessman, not a career politician.

"I want change for the state, big time. We need change," said Donna Roberto, a state employee who lives in Manchester. "The state needs to run like a business instead of running amok with spending."

Roberto, who said she works in the Department of Revenue Services, said state employees are "paid too much" and the benefits are "unbelievable." She is a new employee, and she said some of the workers who have been there for a long time do not understand the problems the state is facing.

"Republicans are considering layoffs. We need to do what's right for the state," she said. "If I have to sacrifice my job, I'm willing to in order to vote my convictions."

David Markowitz, an attorney from Canton, said Foley has the necessary business experience and "won't be afraid to make cuts."

"The state's spending is absolutely out of control," Markowitz said.

Fedele's funding

Having endured three hours of uncertainty and anticipation, the crowd of Fedele supporters at the Italian Center in Stamford cheered as the lieutenant governor made his way toward the podium, despite the message everyone knew was coming.

"We fell short on our goal," he said in his concession speech. "We worked hard, got our word out there, and came close."

Despite mounting a furious comeback in the polls over the past two weeks, Fedele could not sustain the momentum through Tuesday's primary. "Things happen for a reason," he said. "Mike Fedele was not meant to move forward at this time."

Throughout the campaign, Foley tried to link Fedele in voters' minds with the state's continuing budget problems. The state has a projected $3.5 billion deficit in the coming fiscal year, and an unemployment rate just shy of 9 percent.

After failing to capture the party's endorsement in May and opting to run in the primary, Fedele was sued by Foley, who claimed that Fedele, who was relying on public funding to pay for his campaign, had actually failed to qualify for the Citizens Election Program. The program provides grants to candidates for statewide offices in exchange for strict limits on campaign spending. Neither Foley nor Griebel participated.

Several court appeals later, Fedele was allowed to begin using the funds in late July. At that point, he lagged behind Foley 48 to 13 percent in the polls.

Once he was cleared to spend the grant money, however, his numbers began to jump. Monday's Quinnipiac poll showed Fedele had closed the gap to 8 points, thanks in part to an intensive ad campaign highlighting Foley's alleged involvement in the closing of a Georgia textile factory in 1998 that put hundreds out of work.

"Those ads were very effective because they're real," said Fedele's campaign spokesman, Chris Cooper. "I felt all along that they were the highest-impact ads out of any race this summer."

But television spots alone can't win an election, and in his speech Tuesday night Fedele thanked all his volunteers and supporters for their hard work.

"Everyone should be proud of what we've done," he said.

The crowd gave him a big round of applause after his speech, and then became strangely quiet for such a large room. After so much work, it was all over.

Fedele's running mate and Danbury Mayor Dan Broughton, who won the Republican nomination for lieutenant governor, said that although he was proud and honored to win, the victory as "bittersweet."

Foley's big night

Foley campaigned on promises to attract new businesses and make the state more "business friendly," reduce the size of government, lower the tax burden on families and make the government more transparent.

"Tom is the only candidate who will bring a collaborative approach," said State Sen. Kevin Witkos, R-Canton. "He will use the legislative and executive branches to right the sinking ship."

Witkos said he has not been always "kept in the loop" when deals were made with Democrats, and he did not agree with Gov. M. Jodi Rell's controversial decision to allow a compromise budget to become law last fall. Foley is the "change we need," Witkos said.

All three candidates distanced themselves from Rell in the final weeks of the race, even though she still enjoys a high approval rate.

"I feel fantastic, very excited," Foley said. "We have some serious challenges ahead, and I have the experience and the skills, with 25 years of turning around businesses, to make sure the state is headed in the right direction."

j.mcdermott@theday.com

k.cheromcha@theday.com