Shays wins 10th term: "We can't be about anger and hate," Shays said. "We have to be about what's best for the country."
Shays wins 10th term
By Fred Lucas
THE NEWS-TIMES
Republican Christopher Shays won a 10th term as 4th District Congressman in a close race with Diane Farrell, who portrayed the incumbent as out of touch with voters.
Shays acknowledged Farrell, who has served four terms as first selectman of Westport, ran a tough race.
When Farrell called him to concede, Shays told her, "I know your future in politics is boundless. I just hope it's not at my expense."
Shays ran on his reputation as a moderate Republican.
"I'm an independent because my constituents are independent," Shays said.
That theme resonated with some Ridgefield residents.
"I don't always agree with Chris Shays but he's a good moderate Republican and you've got to back that," Jim Carroll of Ridgefield said.
Rob Jones agreed.
"I voted for Shays with reservations," Jones said. "I would like for him to be more to the right. He's sort of in the center. But he's better than Farrell. Mayor of Westport, give me a break. That's like putting (Ridgefield First Selectman) Rudy Marconi in the Senate."
Other voters were looking for change.
Tracy Mendes voted for Farrell and "Democrats across the board. I wanted to see change and something new, and I want to see a peaceful world."
Julian Morrow also went Democratic.
"I'm not a registered Democrat," Morrow said. "I try not to be partisan. But this year I went for the whole Democratic ticket because I wanted to vote anti-Bush across the board."
Shays carried Ridgefield, the northern-most town in the 4th District, 6,806 to 5,134. In Redding, Shays got 2,816 votes to Farrell's 2,381. Farrell won in Bridgeport but lost every other town in the district, including Westport, where Shays won by five votes.
Farrell said she was glad she ran.
"We are all Americans," Farrell said. "It was so important we made our voices known."
She acknowledged the difficulty of running against Shays, who has been in Congress for 17 years.
"Everyone in this room knew when we signed up for this race it was going to be tough," Farrell said, addressing supporters at the Inn at Longshore in Westport.
The closer-than-expected race drew national attention. Arizona Sen. John McCain and former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani came to Connecticut to stump for Shays. New York Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton and former presidential candidate Howard Dean stumped for Farrell. The Republican and Democratic national committees poured money into the race.
Shays established a moderate record during his nine terms in Congress, supporting abortion rights and gun control and leading the fight for the passage of campaign finance reform. Still, he has been hawkish on defense and supported the war in Iraq and President Bush's $1.35 trillion tax cuts.
Farrell capitalized on those votes to accuse Shays of being too close with the right wing of the Republican Party. The campaign has even called him a rubber stamp for controversial House Majority Leader Tom DeLay.
Shays looked ahead, saying he hopes to find more common ground in Washington, D.C., after eight years of divisiveness under President Clinton and the past four years with President Bush.
"We can't be about anger and hate," Shays said. "We have to be about what's best for the country."
He said he told insiders in the national Republican Party they could not run negative ads on his behalf.
"I will never, ever try to win an election by having someone dislike my opponent," Shays said.
Farrell frequently attacked Shays for being too much of a national figure and ignoring the needs of the 4th district. But Shays said he was proud to run on his record.
When Farrell announced in January she would run against him, Shays said "I told my staff we would win this race if I do a good job in my responsibilities in Congress. If I don't do a good job I'll have to spin, and I'm not good at spin."
Shays, who has beaten previous opponents by double digits, found a surprising challenge in Farrell.
She nearly matched him dollar for dollar in the race, with both raising more than $1 million.
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