Game on: Malloy declares for re-election

A screen capture from the re-election campaign website of Gov. Dannel P. Malloy taken Friday, March 28, 2014.

A screen capture from the re-election campaign website of Gov. Dannel P. Malloy taken Friday, March 28, 2014.

The schadenfreude is over.

After months of playing it coy about his re-election plans, Gov. Dannel P. Malloy declared his bid for a second term Friday in an email to supporters that linked to his official campaign website.

It sets in motion what is expected to be a tough grind for the Democrat, who has presided over a slower than hoped for economic recovery but burnished his leadership credentials during a series of crises such as the Sandy Hook School shooting.

“I’m in. I just announced that I’m running for reelection and wanted to make sure you heard the news from me right away,” reads the email from Malloy. “This campaign will be about you and the work we’ve done together over the last three years. But it’s mainly about what we still need to accomplish together in Connecticut.”

Many political observers expected Malloy to wait until after the current legislative session ends in May to announce his candidacy, which will be subsidized by public election funds.

Here is the full text of Malloy’s email to supporters:

Friend,

I’m in. I just announced that I’m running for reelection and wanted to make sure you heard the news from me right away. This campaign will be about you and the work we’ve done together over the last three years. But it’s mainly about what we still need to accomplish together in Connecticut.

Will you join my campaign to keep Connecticut moving forward by visiting my new website right now?

When I was a boy, my mother always told me that we have an obligation to leave this world a better place for having lived in it. Those words are burned into my memory. But as a kid who couldn’t even tie his own shoelaces because of some disabilities I was born with, I sometimes wondered what kind of future I’d have. I dreamed of the chance to help others the way my mother and my teachers helped me.

I fought my whole life to have the privilege to serve my community, my city, and my state. It’s how I live my mother’s words each day. I never would have made it to where I am today without the inspiration and help of so many – my parents, my wife Cathy, my family, teachers, friends and supporters – to overcome obstacles and take on the challenges that truly make a difference in people’s lives.

Connecticut has been through so much these last three years, but every time we’ve faced a challenge we’ve stepped up, and together, we’ve overcome every single one. We’ve given small businesses the help they need to grow and create good jobs, turned the worst deficit in the nation into a balanced budget, reduced the state’s long-term debt by billions, and made Connecticut the first state in the nation to increase the minimum wage to $10.10 per hour.

We’ve made a lot of progress since 2011, but I’m not satisfied. We have more work to do. Today, I’m asking for your help because you will drive this campaign. Its success depends on you.

Can I count on you to make a contribution to help move this campaign forward?

My focus right now is on the legislative agenda we’ve put forward for our state’s future; that’s why this campaign will be built by you. There’s so much more I want to share with you, and I will in the coming days and weeks. Right now I humbly ask for your support so we can continue the work to leave this world – this state – a better place for having lived in it.

Thank you,

Dan

 

Neil Vigdor