By Daniela Altimari
Avon attorney Martha Dean emerged as the winner of a four-way fight for the Republican nomination for attorney general at the party’s nominating convention Saturday.
But Ross Garber, who entered the race on Thursday after his sister-in-law, Susan Bysiewicz, was declared ineligible to run by the state Supreme Court, vowed to force a primary. He received 39 percent of the vote; Dean netted more than 50 percent of the vote.
After the tally, Dean, 51, a lawyer from Avon, gave what might be one of the shortest acceptance speeches in convention history: “Thank you God. Thank you Republicans. Thank you very much. That is my short speech. Thank you.”
Dean and Garber were both on the statewide ballot in 2002. Garber ran for state treasurer and Dean ran for attorney general. Both lost.
There were initially four Republicans in the race, but Kie Westby and state Rep. Arthur O’Neill, both of Southbury, failed to garner enough support to secure a primary. After the first round of balloting, both men released their delegates.
Garber said he was pleased by his showing, given the short amount of time he’s been in the race.
“Now I’m looking forward to starting to talk to the voters of Connecticut,” said Garber, who is 43 and lives in Glastonbury. “I’m happy that the Republicans in the state are going to get to have a choice about who they want their nominee to be.”
The winner of the GOP primary will face Democrat George Jepsen, who won by acclimation.
(In photo, Martha Dean celebrates with her husband and campaign manager Malcolm McGough, on the stage of the 2010 Connecticut Republican Convention, after receiving her party’s nomination as its candidate for Connecticut Attorney General. Mark Mirko/Hartford Courant)