Republican Carl Fortuna Elected First Selectman

Republican candidate Carl Fortuna was elected first selectman Tuesday, defeating Democrat nominee Carol Manning by 954 votes. The result was 2,084 votes for Fortuna to 1,130 votes for Manning.

Fortuna’s Republican running-mate, Scott Giegerich, was elected to the board with 2,012 votes. Democrat Steven Gernhardt was also  elected to the board with 1,159 votes.

In a victory statement the newly elected Old Saybrook First Selectman, Carl Fortuna, said at his campaign headquarters in Old Saybrook, “I am thrilled to be elected, and I look forward to doing great things for the town of Old Saybrook.”

The losing candidate, Carol Manning was far more subdued. In fact there were supporters with tears in their eyes at her headquarters. Manning said simply, “I’ll be around. I’ll be around.”

In a nice touch Fortuna walked down Boston Post Road to Manning’s nearby headquarters to extend his greeting to Manning, not that it helped much.