Darien Election Guide

As we look ahead to November’s elections, Fairfield Patch is devoted to bringing you the information you need about every race in town. Here's our start on the candidates and issues we'll be covering as November draws near. Bookmark this page for updates.

State Legislature

State House of Representatives: 141st District:

• Rob Werner (D) is a lawyer and member of the Royle School Parent Teacher Organization in Darien. He has been volunteer President of Southend Community Services in Hartford, and member of the Darien Little League Softball Board, coach or manager of Little League softball, Little League baseball, Friendship League and Fall baseball.

• Terrie Wood (R) is running for re-election to her third term representing the 141st District in the House of Representatives. The district covers most of Darien as well as the Rowayton section of Norwalk. She is the ranking House Republican member on the Select Committee on Children and also sits on the Appropriations and Environment committees. She lived in Rowayton for five years before living in Darien for 30.

State Senate: 25th District:

• Bob Duff (D) Duff in in the 25th Senatorial District, covering Norwalk and Darien. He's . He was elected to his fourth term in 2010, seeking his 5th term this year. Duff is the chair of the Bank Committee and Vice Chair of the Transportation and Energy & Technology Committees. He also chairs two subcommittees as a member of the Appropriations Committee. He's a fifth-generation Norwalk resident.

State Senate: 27th District:

• Carlo Leone (D) Leone was elected in a special election in February of 2011 to represent the 27th District, which is Stamford and parts of Darien. He previously served in the House of Representatives for the 148th District of Stamford. He was appointed as Deputy Mayor Whip by Speaker of the House Chris Donovan. Prior to his position in the Senate, he served as chair of the Regulations Review Committee, vice-chair of the Finance, Revenue & Bonding Committee and vice-chair of the Public Safety Committee.

Fourth Congressional District

• Jim Himes (D): The congressman, who on Patch, is seeking his third term in the 4th district and has recently focused his efforts on job growth, expanding veterans' rights and strengthening domestic violence laws.

• Steve Obsitnik (R): The Westport businessman, who , said when he that leadership in Washington is needed to "support entrepreneurship, excellence in education, fiscal responsibility and private sector job growth."

U.S. Senate

DEMOCRATS:

• Susan Bysiewicz (D): The former Secretary of State about the importance of small business in creating jobs in the state. "If we’re serious about job creation we need to send leaders to Washington who understand small business,” she said. “As the wife of a small business owner I know about that. Before my head hits the pillow every night I get an earful about small business.”

• (D): The congressman, , has been , but his response is that he's "proud" of his record and the way Congress has handled Wall Street reform.

• Sylvester Salcedo (D): The Bridgeport lawyer is known for being one of the few Asian-Americans to run for U.S. Senate in the 2012 election — perhaps now the only one since — as well as driving to the Mexican border earlier this year to gain a some attention for his campaign.

REPUBLICANS:

• Linda McMahon (R): , the former WWE CEO is a clear frontrunner in the U.S. Senate race along with Rep. Murphy. She recently shared her .

• (R): The former congressman, who lost his seat to Himes in 2008, recently turned to Republican political strategist Karl Rove for assistance with his campaign.

• Kie Westby (R): , the Southbury attorney said that career politicians have had their chance to make changes. "It requires a fresh face, a fresh approach," he said. Although he hasn't officially suspended his campaign, Westby recently announced that he wouldn't submit the signatures required to be part of the Republican primary.

UNAFFILIATED:

• Lee Whitnum (unaffiliated): The Greenwich resident spark some controversy when because Gov. Malloy and Rep. Chris Murphy are "lying to the people to pander to the ultra conservative branch of the Jewish community." She announced in June that she would