Harry Rilling wins fourth term as Norwalk’s mayor

Mayor Harry Rilling celebrates his win on election night Tuesday, November 5, 2019, at the Hilton Inn in Norwalk, Conn. Mayor Harry Rilling celebrates his win on election night Tuesday, November 5, 2019, at the Hilton Inn in Norwalk, Conn. Photo: Erik Trautmann / Hearst Connecticut Media Buy photo Photo: Erik Trautmann / Hearst Connecticut Media Image 1 of / 41 Caption Close Harry Rilling wins fourth term as Norwalk’s mayor 1 / 41 Back to Gallery

NORWALK — Incumbent Harry Rilling won his fourth term as the city’s mayor on Tuesday, according to unofficial results from the Democratic Town Committee.

Rilling topped unaffiliated candidate Lisa Brinton for the second time, winning 55 percent of the vote, according to the unofficial count.

Supporters shouted “two more years” as Rilling entered the meeting room at the Hilton Garden Inn on Tuesday night.

“In keeping with tradition, I have to say one thing: ‘Wow, wow, wow!’” Rilling said to cheers from his supporters. “I am so honored and privileged to be elected for a fourth term.”

Rilling was introduced by Connecticut Attorney General William Tong, and State. Sen. Majority leader Bob Duff, D-Norwalk, who alluded to what was at times a contentious race.

“The voters have responded to a positive message,” Duff said.

Rilling, who was formerly Norwalk’s chief of police, was first elected in 2013. In 2017, he defeated Brinton, who got roughly 23 percent of the vote as a petitioning candidate in a four-person race. This year, she was endorsed by the Republican Town Committee, making it a one-on-one race once Darnell Crosland, the controversial attorney and former Norwalk NAACP chairman who toyed with the idea of a Republican mayoral run, dropped out of the race. Crosland is instead vying for an at-large seat on the Common Council.

During the campaign, Rilling and Brinton often clashed on issues like development, state infrastructure projects, like the Walk Bridge, and transparency.

Brinton distinguished herself as not a politician, citing her on-the-ground experience as an educational activist. She also labeled herself the “businesswomen” candidate, citing her experience as a corporate executive at AT&T/Lucent Technologies, and vowed to be tougher on the developers of the POKO project and state legislators to bring more funding to Norwalk.

Mark Suda, chair of the Republican Town Committee, praised Brinton for her “fantastic campaign” and receiving an endorsement across parties in a close race.

“That shows her support and the future of the Republican/Independent party in Norwalk together,” Suda said.

Rilling, on the other hand, said the city needed to embrace its growth and continue to build up its urban core with apartments near transportation hubs. He touted the city’s success during his years six years in office.

Democrats also swept the Board of Education and took all five at-large seats on the Common Council. The only in district Democrat not to be elected to the Common Council was James Page, in District D.

“It’s really a testament to hard work and reasonableness,” Democratic Town Committee Chair Ed Camacho said, “It shows that people just care about whether or not the city is improving and moving forward. They answered that question with a resounding ‘yes.’”

The race grew increasingly tense as the election approached. Last week, city Democrats filed a complaint against Brinton’s campaign for allegedly improperly reporting contributions. Brinton also often knocked Rilling for lacking transparency and courting developers.

Despite Rilling’s announcement, and the celebration that ensued at the Hilton, Brinton refused to concede until all absentee ballots were counted. As of 11 p.m., she had still not conceded.

justin.papp@scni.com; @justinjpapp1; 203-842-2586