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 ads now being run by the underticket candidates for statewide office.

Plus, Matt Ritter is weighing in on a campaign controversy in a potentially competitive seat.

And…is Arunan Arulampalam a genuine Olivia Rodrigo fan? Apparently so. We’ll tell you how the superstar singer-songwriter helped give the capital city a boost.

Let’s dive in…

The underticket hits the airwaves

It’s that time of year again. College football fans across Connecticut are turning to Google to ask, “What is a comptroller?”

The candidates for Connecticut’s constitutional offices are beginning to roll out their commercials on the traditional broadcast airwaves, streaming television, and on social media platforms. Viewers on certain platforms were subjected to a few of them during this past weekend’s college and NFL games.

In their bout for comptroller, Sean Scanlon and Jen Tooker each launched paid media campaigns within the last week. Scanlon’s ad featured a cameo by his mom and an appeal to anti-AI populism. Tooker took a more traditional approach, utilizing a narrator and some b-roll to promote her bid for a job most voters probably have a difficult time describing – or spelling. In defense of those voters, even Ned Lamont seems to have a hard time remembering the name of the office.

Controller…comptroller?

Erick Russell, the incumbent treasurer, also released his first ad of the cycle. The 30-second spot highlights Russell’s bio and Connecticut’s fiscal rebound. Fred Wilms, the Republican nominee, has yet to roll out any advertising but has a full public financing grant to wage a fight. Peter Lumaj, the GOP’s choice for secretary of the state, is also fully funded. In fact, he was the first statewide Republican to cross the mark. It’s unclear if he’s begun an ad spend yet, but incumbent Stephanie Thomas is already underway with her own.

As for the race for attorney general, it appears as though William Tong is well-positioned to again be the vote leader among the candidates for the constitutional offices. Recent University of New Hampshire polling showed him with a larger lead over his opponent than Ned Lamont currently enjoys over Ryan Fazio. John Bolton, the Republican candidate, has lagged far behind in fundraising. He’s yet to be approved for public financing. His July filing listed about $10,000 in donations.

Tong has yet to release his maiden television commercial for this cycle, but his nearly two-minute video announcing his re-election bid provides a preview of what he has to work with.

Ritter and Candelora at odds over candidate’s controversial post

Keep your eye on the 8th House district. The Coventry-area seat is currently held by the outgoing Republican Tim Ackert, and the fight to fill it made headlines in the CT Mirror last week.

Matt Ritter and Vin Candelora took opposite sides in a dispute over whether or not a video posted by the 21-year-old Republican nominee for the district is disqualifying.

Mark Pazniokas has the write up. 

Speaking of Matt Ritter…

The House speaker can take at least partial credit for a major pop culture coup pulled off by his hometown over the weekend. The chart-topping singer-songwriter Olivia Rodrigo opened her world tour with a two-night run at the People’s Bank Arena. Ritter and Hartford’s other power players pushed hard for a major state investment to modernize the venue.

There were more than a few snarky comments made on social media about Rodrigo’s choice to begin one of the year’s most anticipated arena tours in Connectiuct’s capital city. But the nine-figure renovations of the former XL Center undoubtedly played a role in making sure one of the biggest stars on the planet could pull off a well-reviewed show to an adoring crowd of fans. The show’s production – including the use of rain effects and the construction of a massive garden – quickly went viral.

Ritter’s wife and daughter attended the show. The speaker himself said he stayed home and watched the Apple TV thriller “Slow Horses," adding that the upgrades to the arena were "critical for the city." He heaped praise on Mike Freimuth and tipped his hat to arena operator OVG. Ritter also said he’s a fan of Rodrigo’s breakout single “Drivers License.” The 43-year-old was eligible to get his own drivers license right around the turn of the millennium – several years before Rodrigo was born.

As it turns out, Arunan Arulampalam is also a fan of “Drivers License.” In an interview with News 8 on the day of Rodrigo’s opener, he named the song as his favorite in the singer's discography.

And, no, he wasn’t just saying that because it’s the only one he knows. Your favorite News 8 political reporter tested Arulampalam's knowledge on Friday while inquiring about Hartford's plans for the nor’easter that hit the state over the weekend. He was able to spot references to a couple other Rodrigo hits and assured residents that his team was prepped for the storm.

You can watch that story here.

Arulampalam disclosed that Rodrigo had spent several days in Hartford rehearsing her act – another sign that the arena is suitable for the A-list of the music industry. The renovations, he said, are allowing the arena to draw in more big acts on a more consistent basis.

Not a bad idea, right?

That’s all for this week. We’ll be back next week with another edition of the Tip Sheet!