Good morning and welcome back to the Tip Sheet, a weekly newsletter from Tom Dudchik’s Capitol Report written by Mike Cerulli.

This week, we’re taking a look at the drama playing out around the re-nomination of PURA chairman Marissa Gillett.

We’ll also give you a look at the operatives working a sleepy special election for the State Senate and give you a couple interesting interviews to listen to as you start your week.

Let’s dive in…

Judgement Day: Gillett’s future at PURA is on the line

It’s crunch time for Marissa Gillett’s future at the Public Utilities Regulatory Authority (PURA).

A flurry of activity late last week injected intrigue and additional controversy into a situation that has already seen tempers flare on both sides of the war over the future of Connecticut’s utility regulator.

At the beginning of the week, Gillett herself stepped into the spotlight for an on-camera interview with Susan Raff of WFSB. Her interview with Raff would be the first in a series of public appeals last week in favor of her nomination.

At the same time, Gillett’s own staff went public in a rare move backing her re-nomination. 18 PURA staffers penned an op-ed supporting her for another term.

The next day, House Democrats made a push of their own. State Rep. Jonathan Steinberg, one of Gillett’s staunchest backers, rallied his colleagues at a press conference that garnered more coverage of the re-nomination fight.

Gov. Ned Lamont also added his voice to the fray, reiterating his support of Gillett on an appearance on Brian Shactman’s radio show (more on that in a bit).

The rapid succession of public overtures had the air of a concerted public relations campaign – one intended to blanket local outlets with pro-Gillett stories in the hopes of swaying the handful of lawmakers who will actually determine the outcome.

After building a bit of momentum early in the week, the pro-Gillett PR blitz was stalled by the release of text messages between the PURA chair and Steinberg. The revelations about Gillett’s communications came courtesy of the Hartford Courant’s Ed Mahony, perhaps the most prolific reporter on the internecine back-and-forths between the rival factions engaged in Connecticut’s utility wars.

The messages published in the Courant prompted renewed criticism from Republicans who have long been critical of Gillett and PURA.

“The Hartford Courant’s reporting raises serious doubts about Chairman Gillett’s neutrality,” Minority Leader Vinny Candelora wrote in a statement.

PURA publicly defended the communications as routine.

Per the latest public statements from the governor’s office, Gillett’s nomination is still a go. Her name is the sole item listed on the agenda for Thursday’s meeting of the Executive and Legislative Nominations Committee.

After months of public acrimony, a potential vote on Thursday provides an opportunity for both sides in the ongoing rate wars to notch a substantive victory.

For the governor, Gillett’s nomination is also a test of his own political sway. Should the nomination be scuttled, it would join highway tolls and an electric vehicle mandate on the list of legislative initiatives that Lamont couldn't quite get over the finish line.

Lamont is currently traveling out west. Will he return to find the numbers on the committee breaking in his favor? Or will his months of public and private efforts fall just a few votes short?

Got a news tip? Drop us a line: Michael.Cerulli@protonmail.com.

Perillo and Afriyie are set to square off. Who’s working on their campaigns?

Trekking through snow and ice, Jason Perillo and Tony Afriyie are making their case to the voters of Shelton, Stratford, Monroe, and Seymour.

The two men are candidates in a special election that will have little bearing on the balance of power in Hartford. But both contenders are campaigning with vigor to fill the vacancy left by former State Sen. Kevin Kelly.

Perillo is an 18-year veteran of the legislature and a Shelton native with deep family ties to the town. He’s running with history on his side. The 21st district has sent Republicans to Hartford for decades. Perillo has enlisted Eddie Aledia to help run his campaign. Aledia is a staffer in the Senate Republican office who has quickly built a reputation as a steady and strategic operative who helped steer the successful re-election campaign of State Sen. Ryan Fazio.

Afriyie is a product of the Stratford public school system who works in Rosa DeLauro’s comms shop. The 27-year old’s team includes faces that are familiar to many in Democratic campaign circles. Tom O’Sullivan and Akash Kaza are both lending a hand. O’Sullivan has consulted on races around the state, and Kaza is a former comms chief for Luke Bronin. Most recently, Kaza was a press aide on the Harris-Walz campaign.

The special election is scheduled for February 25th with a period of early voting Feb. 20-23.

Voters in Groton and New London will also be heading back to the polls in a special election to select a successor to former State Rep. Christine Conley. We’ll have more on that race next week.

Is your office, agency, or firm hiring for a role? Did you recently make a new hire you want to announce to the Connecticut political community? Did you just start in a new role and want the state’s most plugged-in insiders to know? Drop us a line to be featured in the Tip Sheet: Michael.Cerulli@protonmail.com.

The radio beat: WTIC at 100, Stewart on Sheketoff, Scanlon in the gauntlet

One of the stalwarts of the Connecticut news scene turned 100 last week.

WTIC, the station that is home to Brain Shactman’s “Brian & Company,” is marking its centennial anniversary at a time when the radio industry is navigating a period of uncertainty and consolidation.

The venerable “NewsTalk 1080” has experienced turbulence in recent months but continues to be a venue for important conversations, including the governor’s recent remarks on Gillett’s nomination battle.

For politicians, radio can often provide a platform for more in-depth discussions. The audience on any given radio program is a fraction of what the state’s major TV news stations can offer, but a consistent presence on radio can convey a lot more about a politician than a 15-second CT soundbite can.

Case in point: recent radio interviews with two potential gubernatorial contenders.

Last week, New Britain Mayor Erin Stewart and State Comptroller Sean Scanlon both hit the airwaves of the Milford-based Connoisseur Media. Stewart appeared on the WICC flagship morning program “Melissa in the Morning.” Scanlon faced the gauntlet of WPLR’s “Chaz & AJ in the Morning.”

Both interviews offered a unique window into the lives of two politicians clearly interested in a promotion.

Oh, and if you’re interested, the Tip Sheet’s author has a radio show, too. “The Mike Cerulli Show” airs every Saturday on WICC from 10-1. It’s also available on the WICC podcast feed, along with Melissa Sheketoff’s program, wherever you get your podcasts.

We’ll be back next week!