19th House District: Landry Running Agaist Becker but Not Campaigning

The Republican candidate running against incumbent State Rep. Brian Becker, D-19th, in the Nov. 6 election is exempt from having a campaign committee, according to a candidate registration form he filed with the Connecticut State Elections Enforcement Commission.

Jon Landry, 37, who serves on the Farmington Board of Education and was previously a member of his town's Zoning Board of Appeals, said that he was nominated as a placeholder candidate to avoid losing his party's slot. Farmington Republican Town Committee Chairman Bill Mastrogiovanni had recommended him, Landry said.

“What that means is I was nominated back at the caucus simply because if we did not have a nomination at that time, the seat would be open and nobody could be put on ballot at that time,” Landry said.

When the West Hartford Republican Town Committee, responsible for nominating a 19th District candidate, failed to find someone to replace Landry in the race against Becker, Landry chose to stay on the ballot.

"Nobody stepped up and wanted to run, but I decided to leave my name on the ballot in order to give the voters a choice," he said. “I had no intention of running a campaign.”

When asked if he would serve if elected, he said, "Yes, I will. Absolutely."

Meanwhile, Becker, 50, filed to have a campaign and spend or raise money to promote his candidacy.

For several months, it was uncertain whether Becker would be running unopposed. The Republicans had until mid-October to come up with a candidate to replace Landry on the ballot.

Becker has been actively campaigning in the weeks leading up to Election Day and knocked on more than 7,100 doors between late May and Monday.

“I really haven’t changed my approach very much because I like to get out and talk to my constituents and go door to door," he told Patch Monday. “I think that it's important that a representative should be out in touch with his or her constituents whether I have an opponent or not."

Avon residents in the town's second voting district will be able to choose between Landry and Becker, a West Hartford attorney, on the November ballot for the 19th District House of Representatives seat. The district includes parts of Avon, Farmington and West Hartford.

In Avon, the amount of voters increased in Becker's territory in the second voting district because of redistricting.

Landry is exempt from "forming a candidate committee" and spending personal funds or raising money to promote his candidacy, according to his paperwork on the election enforcement commission. Landry doesn't have to file campaign finance reports.

Without funding, he cannot pay for signs, mailings, an office and other resources to campaign. He can do something that doesn't cost money like knocking on doors, but he said he is not actively campaigning at all and hasn't even promoted his candidacy on social media.

Becker, however, has a campaign and is authorized to raise and spend money this election and has also qualified for a Citizens' Election Program grant.

There is another campaign in a different district, however, that Landry said he is "focusing all of [his] energy on." Landry said he is the campaign manager for fellow Farmington resident and State Rep. William Wadsworth, R-21st. He is registered as deputy treasure for Re-Elect Wadsworth 2012, according to the election enforcement commission's website.

Landry said there are no restrictions for being a candidate and simultaneously serving on someone's campaign in another district. However, he did say that when he goes to an event with the Wadsworth campaign, Wadsworth is not allowed to pay for him because he is a candidate in another race and he has to pay himself.

The polling place for Voting District 2 is now at the Avon Volunteer Fire Department headquarters at 25 Darling Drive, not Town Hall.