League Of Women Voters Darien Cancels Candidate Forum

DARIEN, CT — The Darien League of Women Voters has canceled its candidate forum scheduled for Oct. 7, citing "a combination of candidate scheduling conflicts, volunteer needs, and other issues."

Co-President of LWV Darien Tiffany O'Connor told Patch Monday that the organization invited every candidate participating in a contested race to attend the forum. The last contested race in Darien was in 2024.

LWV forums do not include candidates who are in uncontested races.

O'Connor said LWV Darien had confirmation that candidates from both parties had planned to attend, and candidates from both parties also declined the invitation.

"Some were still figuring out their schedules and did not know whether or not they would be able to attend," O'Connor told Patch. "A combination of several issues made it impossible to hold the forum as planned, including volunteer needs. The LWV Candidates Forum is an event that requires a great deal of time and effort by a team of volunteers."

LWV Darien let candidates know to save the date for the Oct. 7 forum in late July via notification to the town's Democratic and Republican Town Committees.

O'Connor said some reminders were sent, and the actual invitation to participate was sent out this month.

In an emailed notice to participating candidates on Sept. 24, LWV Darien said it was "disappointed" to cancel the event.

"We recognize that candidates have busy schedules and many commitments during election season, and we sincerely appreciate everyone who responded to our invitation and worked with us as we tried to plan the evening," the notice said.

"Our goal has always been to provide Darien voters with a fair, nonpartisan opportunity to hear from candidates. We are disappointed that we will not be able to offer the forum this year, but believe canceling is the only option under the circumstances."

Darien RTC Chair Jameson Riley said he had "no comment" when asked about the cancellation of the forum. Patch has reached out to DTC Chair Erika Procaccini for comment.

This year, contested races include:

• State Sen. Bob Duff (D-25) vs. Republican challenger Justin Perry
• Sam Nestor (D) vs. Alma Sarelli (R) in the 26th state Senate race
• State Rep. Tom O'Dea (R-125) vs. Democratic challenger Meredith Tobitsch

At the municipal level, there are contested races for the Board of Education, where there are four candidates but only three seats available. Each voter can only select up to two candidates.

Republicans Zach Fleitman and Greg Grambling are running against Democrats Crystal Hill and Peter Orphanos.

Democrat Francisco Cardona and Republican Mike Nedder are vying for probate judge.