Wilton Democratic Caucus | Town Hall – Annex Room A

February 2, 2010 | Tags:

• March 23, 2010 7:30 pm to 9:00 pm

Party Caucus

In Connecticut, parties have caucuses in March to choose delegates for the conventions in May. The caucus is open to all registered Democrats in Town.

For Wilton, the Democratic caucus will be held on March 23rd at 7:30 p.m. in Room A of the Wilton Town Hall.

In May, the delegates go to conventions to choose the nominees for state representative, state senator, state constitutional officers, as well as senator and congressperson.

The Nominating Conventions

The biggest convention is the State Democratic Convention in Hartford. The delegates from each town come and cast their votes for their favorite candidate to be the party’s nominee for the various “constitutional offices” (i.e. Governor, Lt. Gov., SOTS, Attorney General, Comptroller, Treasurer) and for U.S. Senate.

Inside the State Convention

The State Convention takes place in a large hall. Each race is taken separately, and candidates are nominated by speeches and seconded from the floor. When all the candidates are nominated, the chair of the delegation from each town goes up to the microphone and announces the votes for this candidate or that. Once a candidate gets over 50% of the votes, he or she is declared the winner. In contested races, there may be multiple votes.

Democratic Primary

If someone other than the person nominated by the delegates wants to vie for the party’s nomination, they have the option to file for the primary election (held in early August). If they gather enough signatures for eligibility, they can be listed on the primary ballot. The winner of the primary vote becomes the party’s candidate.

General Election

The general election is held the first Tuesday after the first Monday in November – this year, that is November 2nd.

2010 Election Dates

    • March 23Selection of Delegates to Conventions
    • April 26– May 6 State Central Member Elections
    • May 10Congressional Convention
    • May 11Judge of Probate Convention
    • May 18 – May 25 Candidates for Municipal Office (Registrar of Voters)
    • May 21 – May 22 State Convention
    • May 24 State Senate Convention
    • May 25State House of Representative Conventions
    • August 10 Democratic Primary
    • Nov. 2General Election