Vice President Joe Biden speaks with Newtown First Selectman Pat Llodra as they sit together on stage at a conference on gun violence at Western Connecticut State University in Danbury, Conn., Thursday, Feb. 21, 2013. Congressman Jim Himes is to the right.
The woman who shepherded Newtown through its darkest days is standing Pat.
The focus of an under-the-radar recruiting effort by some top Republicans in Connecticut, who slotted her as an ideal candidate for secretary of the state, Newtown First Selectman Pat Llodra is ruling out a run for higher office.
“I have no political aspirations,” Llodra told Hearst Connecticut Media Wednesday, confirming that she was courted. “I don’t aspire to be anything.”
Re-elected to a third term last November in an uncontested race, Llodra said she has unfinished business in Newtown, which overwhelmingly voted to accept $49.25 million in state funding to demolish and rebuild Sandy Hook Elementary School.
“This is where I serve the best,” Llodra said. “We took quite a hit 16 months ago, and I think I provide some kind of stability for our community. I’m a known quantity and am liked and respected.”
Llodra would have likely vaulted to the top of a GOP field for secretary of the state — Connecticut’s top election official — that includes former U.S. Senate candidate Peter Lumaj and Republican State Central Committee member Mike McDonald of Windsor, sources told Hearst.
Democrat Denise Merrill is seeking a second term in the job, which is also responsible for initiating local audits of election results and registering businesses in the state. She previously served as majority leader in the state House of Representatives.
When Llodra showed up at the most recent meeting of the Republican State Central Committee, some party leaders got the impression that she might be open to running for higher office and quietly put out feelers. It never went any further, however.
Llodra’s name was also previously floated as a potential candidate for Congress in the 5th District, which is represented by freshman Democrat Elizabeth Esty. Presented with the Republican women’s leadership award last May at the state GOP’s annual fundraising dinner, Llodra similarly removed her name from consideration for that office.
“My heart and my head is very much committed to doing my work here in Newtown,” Llodra said Wednesday. “I can do the greatest good here, I think, locally.”
Llodra characterized the attention paid to her by top Republicans as flattering.
“I appreciate that consideration,” she said. “I think they’ve been very sincere.”