Politics & Government

'Independents For Orange,' A New Political Party in Town

"Our goal is to challenge the status quo and get informed, committed, non-partisan individuals elected to town Boards and Commissions."

The following text is a press release from Independents For Orange.

Years in the making, a grass roots group, Independents For Orange (IFO), has been formed. 

The organization became official May 30 when paperwork was filed with the CT Secretary of State’s office, which reserved the designation. The filing with the Secretary of State will enable candidates to run for municipal offices this November as Independents For Orange.

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IFO is a group of dedicated Orange community leaders that have come together to provide an opportunity for Orange residents who want to serve in town government and help make Orange a better place without having to be affiliated with either of the two majority parties — Republican or Democrat. 

“Independents For Orange will focus on running candidates with a proven track record of leadership, people who will work tirelessly on behalf of all the residents of Orange without getting bogged down in traditional party politics”, said IFO Chairman Mike Richetelli. 

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“Our goal is to challenge the status quo and get informed, committed, non-partisan individuals elected to town Boards and Commissions. We’re looking for people that will lead on issues, be proactive on bringing new ideas to the table, put the best interests of the town first and most importantly, be able to work with elected officials on both sides of the aisle,” he said.

Although a search for candidates has not officially begun, there are no plans at this time to run a candidate for First Selectman. 

“Out of the gate, we intend to field a slate of under-ticket candidates for 2013 and have it grow from there. We believe this is the first time there will be an Independent under-ticket slate of candidates without running someone for 1st Selectman in the history of the town. This shows that we’re making a long term commitment to build this for the future from the ground up” said Chad Lombardi, one of the co-founders of IFO. 

Mike Richetelli will be running for the Board of Selectmen, and elementary school Principal Jim O’Connor will be running for Board of Education. 

“With two children currently in the Orange elementary school system, I have a vested interest in working to ensure that we have the best schools possible in Orange. I plan to utilize my expertise as a longtime school administrator to solidify and advance the goals of our district,” O’Connor said. 

Richetelli addressed the plans for IFO moving forward. 

“We’re in the process of building a team of concerned residents that want to work collectively, without party politics," he said. "We look forward to talking to people in the coming weeks that want to be part of something new and exciting." 

"So far," he added, "the feedback we’ve received has been outstanding. People understand that it can only benefit the residents of Orange to have more choices at the polls. One of our goals is to encourage voters to elect people, not parties and to take a close look at each candidate’s qualifications. We expect to have a superb group of candidates in November; the idea is to highlight the strengths and leadership credentials of candidates who run as Independents.” 

Anyone interested in more information on Independents For Orange can visit www.ifoct.org  or email info@ifoct.org.

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