Darien's Elect Take Oath of Office

At a number of simple yet poignant ceremonies this past week, Darien’s newly elected and re-elected officials were sworn in to office.

Right hands raised, Town Clerk Donna Rajczewski (R) read the oath:

“Do you solemnly swear that you will faithfully discharge, according to law, your duties as elected officials to the town of Darien to the best of your ability; so help you God?”

And that was that. Each ceremony lasted all but a few minutes; each held lasting significance. The speech act allows the Darien elect to exercise their legislative and executive powers of office. While State law requires elected officials to take the oath of office before their term officially begins at 12:01 a.m. on Monday, Nov. 9, it does not require that they necessarily take the oath together, said Rajczewski.

And so, a single ceremony scheduled for Thursday afternoon turned into three.

The first took place at noon on Wednesday, Nov. 4, because First Selectman Dave Campbell (R) had a family commitment out of state for the latter half of the week. With roughly fifty family members and Town employees as witness, Campbell and running mates Selectman Jerry Nielsen and Selectman Jayme Stevenson, along with Board of Education member Amy Bell took the oath, ensemble.

A round of applause, Rajczewski presented small paper I.D. cards, and Carolyn Schoonmaker presented each with a coffee mug labeled “The Most Republican Town in Connecticut” on behalf of the Republican Town Committee.

It was an all-Republican afternoon, but Rajczewski said that ceremonies aren’t typically coordinated along party lines.

 “Thank you all for coming. It’s a nice surprise,” said Campbell. “I look forward to working with all of you. Jerry, Jayme and I are a team, and you’ll see a lot of us, I hope.”

A second ceremony took place at 4 p.m. Thursday, as planned. It was a mix of Democrats and Republicans; all but a few of Darien's re-elected officials took the oath. The ceremony followed exactly the same format as Wednesday’s—sans mugs.

And at a third ceremony, held at 11 a.m. in Tilly Pond Park on Saturday, Selectman David Bayne (D) and Selectman Callie Sullivan (D) were sworn in to office for another term.

"It would have sent a nice message of unity to the town for all five of us to be sworn in together, but unfortunately our schedules would not permit that," said Bayne.

Darien's newly elected Board of Selectmen will hold their first meeting on Monday, Nov. 9; not all members will be present due to scheduling conflicts. The first "official" five-member meeting is scheduled for Nov. 16.

The 49 newly elected and re-elected members of the Representative Town Meeting will take an oath en masse at their meeting Monday, Nov. 9 at 8 p.m.

First Selectman:
David Campbell (R)

Selectmen:
David Bayne (D)
Jerry Nielsen (R)
Jayme Stevenson (R)
Callie Sullivan (D)

Town Clerk:
Donna Rajczewski (R)

Town Treasurer:
Joan Hendrickson (R)

Tax Collector:
Robert Locke (R)

Board of Finance:
Lorene E. Bora (R)
Jon Zagrodzky (R)
Joseph Duwan (R)
Martha Banks (D)

Board of Education:
Elizabeth Hagerty-Ross (R)
Amy Bell (R)
George Reilly (D)

Board of Assessment Appeals:
Christopher Peters (R)
Kevin P. O’Connor (D)

Planning & Zoning Commission:
Frederick Conze (R)
Joseph Spain (R)
Eric Voight (D)
Vickie Riccardo (D)

Representative Town Meeting