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Remember Lee Whitnum, who lost the Democratic congressional primary two years ago by a landslide to Jim Himes?

Not to be deterred by her less-than-stellar showing in that race — Himes got 88 percent of the vote — Whitnum decided she wanted to run for U.S. Senate this year and challenge AG Dick Blumenthal for the Democratic nomination. 

A word of advice to Whitnum: there’s this great invention called Google you might want to check out.

Whitnum showed up at the Connecticut Convention Center last Friday in Hartford for what she thought was the Democratic conclave, only to find herself at the state Republican Convention.

The Democrats were holding their state party convention at the Connecticut Expo Center, which is all of 2.05 miles away.

The Connecticut Convention Center is not to be confused with the Connecticut Expo Center, which is located 2.05 miles to the north.

By the time Whitnum showed up at the RIGHT convention — or should I say LEFT — the nominations for Senate had been closed.

Whitnum wasn’t about to stop there, however.

A former gal pal of John Kerry and author of the novel “The Hedge Fund Mistress,” Whitnum fired off an e-mail to party leaders early Saturday morning demanding a do-over.

Here is an except obtained by Hearst newspapers:

“I was never told the location of the convention. I falsely assumed it was at the convention center. I was late to the Expo and roll-call had begun. There were a lot of abstentions.  I want us to do the roll-call again and I want my ten minutes.”

Didn’t Whitnum already get her 15 minutes?

When top Democrats informed Whitnum that the convention information was on the party’s Web site, she reportedly told them, “No one uses the Internet.”

Lee Whitnum during her 2008 congressional campaign.

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Wow. When I got the offer to be an alternate delegate from Fairfield for the GOP convention this weekend and simultaneously to blog for the Connecticut Post, I had no idea what to expect. There were definitely a few things that I learned as I shook my rookie status in Hartford among the countless memories I’ll have. Here are a few highlights:

1. You can still walk away a winner without having voted for a winner. When push comes to shove, we’re all on the same team. And while we may disagree here and there about who we want to be the nominee, ultimately we all want to elect Republicans to turn this state around. This convention had an unusually amount of opportunity for candidates since there were no incumbents and thus lots of folks excited to take positions back from control from Democrats who have run this state amok. At the end of the day, we’re rallying behind our candidates to take out the opposition.

2. It’s more fun to know people in high places. Sure I could have gone as a complete outsider and had a productive time casting my votes and calling it a day. But meeting and getting to know GOP brass made the experience that much more awe-inspiring. Leaders like Senator McKinney and Lt. Gov. Fedele have been influential in steering the state party up until this point and hold the key to future success. Hear their insights into problems confronting our state was truly beneficial. I definitely have to work on my schmoozing, though. All too often I froze like an icicle when I met someone important. Rookie mistake.

3. Finding a voice in a vote is key to figuring out your own principles. As a delegation, Fairfield was able to vote with relative unity showing how like-minded many of the delegates are in town. And there was definitely an allure to playing good soldier and voting with the delegation as a block to show support for a candidate with a particular ideology that we identify with as a whole. But there were times when I broke from the majority of the delegation, a bold move to begin with but perhaps more surprising for a few in the delegation considering I was the youngest one there at age 22. I don’t view it as a bad thing though and I was lucky to have a group of people that were just fine with a young pup like me voting his conscience.

4. Next time, make sure to get more sleep. I mean sure, it doesn’t seem like a lot of work to sit there and cast votes…but it is. It’s a long day and it is actually pretty grueling both mentally and physically. Lots of people want your time and attention, and while it can be flattering, it can be exhausting when they won’t take “no” for an answer. Eventually though I think I found a backbone and got better at the “Sorry, I’m supporting so and so” instead of hearing the whole pitch and sheepishly slinking away.

5. The experience is enhanced when you know what’s going on. That means researching the candidates before hand, finding out all the scuttlebutt and intrigue, and figuring out who actually has a shot to win. Considering myself a novice, I waited until the last moment to make up my mind about each candidate (opting out of decorating myself in stickers and pins to show my allegiance). That allowed me to blend in when I wanted to and learn about the candidates openly and honestly from their supporters, staff, and themselves.

6. Let yourself enjoy the moment. I mean, for a political junkie like me, this stuff is like crack. All the attention, all the celebrities (well, to me at least), all the free food and swag… it was enough to make any political science major happy in the heart. Hopefully I’ll get the opportunity to do it again and further capitalize on the experience.

I have to thank the Fairfield RTC and its chair Jim Baldwin for letting me serve as a delegate, specifically Fairfield Town Clerk Betsy Browne for letting me serve as her alternate and giving me a great experience. I also have to thank Fairfield Probate Judge Dan Caruso for introducing me to people whose significance is too great for me to even appreciate at this point. Plus I am grateful for the Connecticut Post for giving me the opportunity to share my thoughts and experiences with their online community. The whole weekend was great and I wouldn’t change a thing about it. Now we get to keep up the momentum and elect a great ticket of Republicans to office this fall. I’ll take extra pride punching the ticket knowing I was a part of the process of putting them on the ballot. Even if I voted for the other guy.

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Republican Gov. M. Jodi Rell delivered her final convention address as the state’s chief executive to fellow Republican delegates Friday night.

During her speech, which was preceded by a glowing mini-film, Rell choked up a bit and also attempted to pump-up the faithful for the November elections.

“I have a feeling it’s going to be a very good year,” Rell said. “We have the best candidates, up and down the ticket, all across the state.”

Rell has avoided endorsing anyone and yesterday did not vote. But she also said she plans to eventually hit the campaign trail with the nominees.

“I want to be out there, stand in front of grocery stores, shake hands of people as they come by and introduce them to our candidates,” she said.

Rell continues to be popular with residents, and she told delegates “it has truly been mind-boggling to serve as your Governor.”

Save for the podium, the lights were down in the hall at the Connecticut Convention Center so it was difficult to see how many people got out of their seats to applaud.  But I wasn’t necessarily feeling all the love you’d think would be accorded Rell at the end of her career. The response was warm, to be sure. It just felt like it was lacking … something …

To be fair, she spoke early in the convention and delegates were still conducting business out on the floor, so there were some distractions.

But I asked a few delegates and a few colleagues, and they agreed with my assessment.

Today I was talking about the gubernatorial nominating process with state Sen. Andrew Roraback, R-Goshen, who backed political outsider Oz Griebel of Simsbury to replace Rell. The topic of Rell’s speech did not come up, but I think Roraback confirmed my suspicions.

“Republicans recognize that it’s time to turn the page, and we’re going to have to turn the page at the capitol next year. With a $4 billion deficit looming, something is going to have to give,” Roraback said. “The depth of our love for Jodi Rell personally knows no bounds, but it’s no secret the budgets that became law under her watch are ticking time bombs.”

Although the video about Rell’s tenure claimed she has served as a “firewall” against reckless decisions by the Democratic-majority legislature, Republican lawmakers were upset  Rell did not veto last year’s Democratic budget and frustrated she struck a deal with the majority party at the end of the 2010 legislative session earlier this month.

In contrast to Rell’s appearance, House Minority Leader Lawrence Cafero, R-Norwalk, a pretty passionate speaker who knows how to get a crowd going and isn’t afraid to toss out some red meat to hungry GOP delegates, recieved a rousing standing ovation at the end of his Saturday morning speech.

A few hours later while I was talking to Cafero a delegate came up to him and praised his speaking abilities. I mentioned the contrast between the response he drew and how the crowd treated the retiring Governor. I asked if he’d noticed.

“I don’t know,” Cafero said. “What the hell do I have, a (noise) meter?”

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By Robert Miller

HARTFORD — Danbury Mayor Mark Boughton received the backing of the Republican State Convention Saturday night to be the GOP candidate for lieutenant governor in November.

Boughton, now serving his fifth term as mayor of Danbury, had been the choice of current Lt. Gov. Michael Fedele to be Fedele’s running mate.

When Greenwich businessman Tom Foley defeated Fedele for the convention’s gubernatorial nod earlier Saturday, Boughton’s prospects appeared to be diminished.

However, he received overwhelming support from the GOP stalwarts at the convention for the party’s No. 2 post in the November election.

It is uncertain whether there will be a primary challenge to Boughton.

Fedele earned enough votes to qualify for a primary run for governor, and he vows to stay in the race.

That leaves Fedele with a primary campaign to run — and another two-plus months of phone-calling and hand-shaking before a primary vote in August.

“We’re on the ballot,’’ Fedele said earlier.

“We’re in it to win it,’’ Boughton said before he gained his own nomination.

Boughton noted that he had been involved in an intense day-and-a half of politicking leading up to the convention. If there was a telephone call to make, he made it.

“I’ve had about two hours sleep,’’ the five-term Danbury mayor said, trying to maintain his usual chipper demeanor despite his weariness.

By mid-afternoon Saturday, his exhaustion had seeped into his face and body.

Boughton started his day with Fedele, working the convention floor for any spare delegates. They’d meet, confer, then head off in different directions.

The work of the previous 36 hours, Boughton said, had been “incredibly hard.’’

He had to convince the people who had supported his own race for governor — ended when he allied with Fedele on Monday — to switch their allegiance.

And, Boughton said, because there were so many candidates running for so many different offices, he had to be careful to be diplomatic — to ask for support without stepping on any toes.

“You don’t want to offend anyone,’’ he said.

When the laborious, town-by-town roll call for governor began, Boughton sat with the Danbury delegation.

Both the Danbury and Stamford delegations went huge for Fedele, bringing out the cheer of the team’s supporters.

But as the count dwindled down to the last few towns, it was clear Fedele was behind by about 100 votes, Boughton said.

“We’ve got to make that up,’’ he said. “We think we can.’’

That proved to be wishful thinking. After the first round of voting, delegates were free to switch. The votes began to flow away from former Congressman Larry DeNardis. Increasingly, they went to Foley.

As the switching proceeded, reporters formed a tight scrum around Foley in the back of the convention hall, waiting for him to be declared the winner.

Fedele and Boughton headed down a long corridor. When they emerged, it was to declare their intention to run in a primary.

But Boughton still had more time at the convention. It had to approve his candidacy for lieutenant-governor Saturday evening, which it did.

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It’s easy to categorize wealthy Greenwich businessman Tom Foley, who today won the  Republican Party’s gubernatorial nomination, as a political outsider in Hartford compared with Lt. Governor Michael Fedele of Stamford.

Fedele was also seeking the nomination and now plans to mount a primary.

But Fedele laughs at the description of Foley as an outsider, noting he served from October 2006 to January 2009 as the ambassador to Ireland under former President George W. Bush.

Outsiders aren’t tapped as ambassadors.

“When was the last time you saw an ad in your newspaper – “Wanted: Ambassador for Ireland’?” Fedele said.

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The Fairfield delegation just got passed an unmarked piece of literature attacking Lt. Gov.candidate Lenny Winkler. It starts off announcing that Foley is championing her for LG then goes on to rip Winkler. All clever enough and secretive except for the big Fedele tag the volunteer who was passing out the material was wearing. Makes sense as Fedele has his running mate in Mark Boughton, but it drew some surprise he would lower himself to the sort of anonymous bashing that desperate candidates undertake. I guess the GOP convention would not be legit without some good ol’ fashioned Republican intrigue.

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Democratic candidates; Kevin Lembo (comptroller), Richard Blumenthal (U.S. senator), Dannel Malloy (governor), Nancy Wyman (lt. governor), and Denise Merrill (secretary of state), gather on the stage at the conclusion of the 2010 State Democratic Convention at the Connecticut Expo in Hartford.  Kathleen O’Rourke/Staff photo