NORWALK, Conn. – Hard evidence has turned up regarding Norwalk Democratic mayoral candidate Harry Rilling’s past party affiliation, thanks to some detective work by Democratic Registrar Stuart Wells.
While some members of Norwalk’s Democratic Party have voiced doubt that Rilling is really one of them, Wells looked in a 1986 voting book and found Rilling’s name. The name has a “D” next to it.
Wells had gone down to the basement under his City Hall office about three weeks ago despite being pressed for time to look for Rilling’s voter registration card from the 1980s, but could not find it.
On Friday, he tried again.
“I had a spare moment today and decided to at least look at the earliest book we did have to see what it showed,” Wells said in an email. “The book is for the 1986 general election. Harry W. Rilling lived at 9½ Cannon St. at that time, in State Legislative District 138D. At that time the lists were prepared with a single letter code for party. Harry W. Rilling is clearly listed with a ‘D’ prior to his name meaning that he was registered as a Democrat at that time.”
Rilling said he was pleased that Wells found the evidence, although he hadn’t prodded the registrar to try again.
“I’ve been saying it all along,” he said. “Now you’ve seen proof beyond a reasonable doubt.”
Rilling said he has knocked on many doors and people realize that he did what he had to do when he changed from being a registered Democrat to being unaffiliated.
“I know people understand that when I got promoted to a higher level of police position I needed to remain neutral,” he said. “So I changed from Democrat to unaffiliated, and when I left the police department I changed from unaffiliated to Democrat. Most people I have spoken to say they understand that ‘you had to be neutral, we understand and accept it and you had to do the right thing.’ I don’t see how anybody can make an issue of it.”
The entire thing was overblown, he said. He agreed with a suggestion that the issue resembled the “birther” attacks on the president’s citizenship.
“It’s like Donald Trump trying to prove Barack Obama was not the president of the United States,” he said.
Small World moment: Although Rilling and Mayor Richard Moccia did not know each other then, their fates were already intertwining – their names appear on the same voter identification page, as Rilling lived on Cannon Street and Moccia lived on Carlin Street.
Wells pointed that out.
“You will also, by coincidence, see Richard Moccia listed on the same page, at 23 Carlin St., and that he has an ‘R’ in front of his name indicating that he was a Republican (just as you would assume),” he said.
Moccia and Rilling were .8 miles apart by vehicle, according to Google Maps.
“(I had) no idea who he was,” Rilling said.
A scan of the page showing the voter registration is attached below. The green highlighting indicates that a vote was cast by the voter in person, Wells said. Red highlighting indicates an absentee ballot.
“We still code the books that way to this day,” Wells said.
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