WEST HAVEN It was the Morrissey faction over the Picard faction in Tuesday’s Democratic primary.More candidates supported by Democratic Town Committee Chairman James Morrissey won in Tuesday night’s hotly contested primary over candidates supported by Mayor John M. Picard.In two of the most heated contests of the night, City Clerk Deborah Collins and Tax Collector Francis Withington will remain the candidates for the Democratic Party. Collins, backed by Morrissey, handily defeated challenger Deborah Evangelista, who was supported by Picard.Former City Councilwoman Martha Bell waged an intense battle against Withington for the tax collector spot on the ticket and earned a large number of votes, though Withington ultimately won. Final tallies were not available Tuesday night. During his one term in office, Withington generated controversy when he refused to hire a tax manager for the office, despite strong urging from Picard and the City Council.Picard said he was particularly disappointed by Bell’s loss to Withington, saying he “couldn’t believe people couldn’t see that we need a professional in that office.” Regarding the loss of a majority of his candidates for City Council, Picard said he is disappointed but still plans to focus on moving the city forward if re-elected.“My intention is always to move the city forward,” he said.Picard also pointed out that two of his candidates for the Board of Education, M. Toni Paine and Mark Palmieri, were the night’s top vote getters. His third Board of Education candidate, Gerald Calabritto, did not make the ticket, as Morrissey backed candidate Eric Murillo did.For City Council, the only Picard supported candidate to defend his spot on the ticket was District 1 Councilman Nicholas Pascale. The rest of the winners for City Council were Morrissey candidates: Sean McCauley, 2nd District; John Lewis, 3rd District; Steve Wydra, 4th District; Councilwoman Nancy Rossi, 7th District; Councilwoman Tracy Morrissey, 8th District; and Councilman Sean Ronan, 9th District. Council member Deborah Conlon lost her 2nd District seat, and Gail Carroll lost her 3rd District seat.“The Democratic voters spoke for themselves,” James Morrissey said at the end of the night. “It was a sweet victory for us.”One person on the Picard team, 18 year old recent Notre Dame High School graduate Michael DiMassa, said he was proud of the showing he had against Rossi. DiMassa said he lost by about 40 votes.“Against a two term incumbent? I’m thrilled. I’ll be back in two years,” he said.
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