To the Editor:
There are many different types of municipal governments in CT. In the Town of Groton, the situation is even more complex with its 3 subdivisions. The Town of Groton is governed by a Town Council of 9, with the Mayor chosen after the general election (early voting through November 4th) at the first Town Council meeting in January 2026, when the new set of councilors you’ve elected are sworn in and vote for a Mayor among themselves. This brings up something you Groton general election voters have never thought about because we’ve never had the crisis in leadership we’ve suffered for the last 2 years with Mayor Rachael Franco.
Executive Summary:
- I am convinced that incumbent Councilor David McBride is the only rational choice for Mayor, so if you agree, please help with your vote so that we end up with at least 5 councilors-elect who will vote for him for Mayor at that first meeting in January 2026.
- SELECTIVE VOTING: I’m asking you to vote for only 5 candidates, and only these exact 5, no more, no less, no substitutions! This type of voting has the best chance to give us the candidates we need to vote for David McBride as Mayor, and doesn’t give a majority to candidates who we know would not vote for McBride, or who we’re unsure of.
- These are the 5 candidates who would give us the best chance of electing Councilor McBride as Mayor, but also believe we need him as Mayor, have worked well with him in the past, and trust his extensive business and community service experience. They also trust his great character and equanimity, in the sense that he considers and respects everyone he works with, and just wants to get the job done, no matter how hard. And no drama!
Democrats (Row A): Councilors Portia Bordelon and David McBride
Independents (Row C): Bill Furgueson, Lauren Gauthier, John Goodrich
I am not including other candidates, not because I don’t like them, but mainly because they are either very new to the Town Council, or I don’t know if they would support McBride as Mayor.
About these candidates:
- Democratic Councilor Portia Bordelon has been on the Town Council for 3 terms and the highest or second highest vote-getter in the last 2 elections. She is well-loved by voters and activists such as myself, because she cares deeply about the whole community, including people who never have had much of a voice, like Navy Personnel and the Branford Manor residents who were living with mold and disrepair, ignored by their landlord. Her voice is essential is critical issues all of us activists in Groton care deeply about. Sadly, in the last 2 years, her voice has not only been the only one in support of critical issues, but repeatedly attacked and suppressed by the majority of the Council, whom I call the Franco faction, with Juliette Parker leading the charges in changing the Council Rules constantly, with the sole purpose of trying to silence Portia. Shameful.
- Democratic Councilor David McBride is serving his 2nd term on the Town Council and was the highest vote getter in the last election. He is currently Finance Director for City of New London and is involved with so many community activities, like teaching a business class at Mitchell, that the list is dizzying! During his first term on the Council, he was named Chair of the School Property Reuse Committee, which consisted from multiple departments. Councilor Bordelon was on that Committee and there was NEVER a harsh word or altercation during their meetings.
- Bill Furgueson I’ve known for about 30 years, since my first alumni reunion at the Williams School where Bill taught history for 7 years. He’s currently the Chair of the Historic District Commission, where’s he’s been a long-time member which has given him substantial experience in town government. You can read more about him in this recent letter to the CT Examiner.
- Lauren Gauthier works at Electric Boat, where she’s responsible for contracts, a job she also does as a volunteer for the State of CT Contracts Review Board. She has just written several excellent articles for the CT Examiner with thorough research and details on 2 issues which are of increasing concern in Groton: 1) our finances and your taxes, and 2) our land use policies at a time when we have a critical need for affordable housing. She’s also the founder of the Groton Independent Party.
- John Goodrich is one of the most popular and outspoken figures in Mystic and Groton. He is a member of the Historic District Commission and works in sales in New London, so has extensive business experience. He’s incredibly devoted to everyone he becomes close to, mainly his family, his friends, his political colleagues, and especially anyone who is willing to become engaged in making Groton a better place to live for all. He has incredible courage in confronting the tough issues, so we can count on his voting for what’s best for all of us. He has also just sent a letter with his views for Groton to the CT Examiner.
Unbeknownst to most Groton voters, the job of Mayor is a very big responsibility, especially since the Mayor relies almost completely on Town Staff information and performance. At the same time, since the Council’s main job is to oversee all the activities of Town Staff and Departments, a Mayor has to find the middle ground between taking in Town Staff information, which he/she needs, and analyzing that information in depth to fulfill the council’s oversight function, criticizing and implementing changes if necessary.
One of the main failures of the last few all-Democratic councils is that they have been indoctrinated into accepting everything the Town Staff produces, including this year’s budget, without any questioning or oversight which is their primary mandate.
This all-Democratic Council has been a first for Groton. It was a backlash vote against the outcome of national elections at the time. But the unprecedented scope of their victory resulted in the election of insufficiently experienced members, still a problem, because they lost all the experienced Republican members.
Key Functions of the Mayor.
- The Mayor and the Town Manager meet to set the agenda for the next meeting. If the Town Manager doesn’t want to put something on the agenda, it’s the Mayor’s job to insist on it. This is incredibly important, to be sure that all the sticky issues, which the Town Manager might rather sweep under the rug, or deal with without Council input, are addressed.
- The Mayor decides on the Chairs and members of all the standing committees. The following are the critical ones:
- Rules Committee: completely abused by Rachael Franco and Juliette Parker in the last few years. The rules now need an almost complete rewrite, going back to the bipartisan council days and starting over. Parker must be replaced, along with its current always complicit members.
- Personnel & Appointments Committee: Also completely abused by Rachael Franco, Bruce Jones and Jill Rusk. These members attempted numerous times to expulse existing, excellent, experienced members of the Planning & Zoning Commission and to replace them with what I call “finger puppets” to get zoning changes they want to pursue their goal of building thousands of new housing units, effectively turning Groton into a bedroom community for Electric Boat. They succeeded in not reappointing the very respected Chair, Jeff Pritchard, by using a shameful and craven strategy (not seconding the motion in committee to consider his reapplication.)
So Groton voters, please consider SELECTIVE VOTING in this election. We will get the change so many of you are asking for, with David McBride as our next Mayor!
Genevieve Cerf
Mystic, CT
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Cerf, a Democrat, previously served on the Groton RTM and Town Council. In 2023, she rain as a Groton Independent