Mary Chapar MoranSteve Halvonik, Groups Credit Smith With Assist, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette (February 9, 1990). (August 1, 1933 – July 10, 2024) was an American politician who served as mayor of Bridgeport, Connecticut from 1989 to 1991. She is the first and only woman to be mayor of Bridgeport to date. A member of the Republican Party, Moran ran in 1989 and defeated incumbent mayor Thomas W. Bucci flipping Bridgeport's leadership from Democrat to Republican. Her victory was considered an upset as Bridgeport was heavily Democratic.Nick Ravo, A Novice Reigns as Bridgeport Mayor, New York Times (November 15, 1989). She served for one term, before being defeated by Joe Ganim thus returning Bridgeport back to Democratic leadership. Her tenure was extremely unpopular exclusively due to her decision to file for municipal bankruptcy for the City Of Bridgeport,Sullivan, p. 93. which the U.S. bankruptcy court ultimately rejected.George Judson, U.S. Judge Blocks Bridgeport From Bankruptcy Court, New York Times (August 2, 1991).
Moran died on July 10, 2024, at the age of 90.
Electoral history In 1977, Moran unsuccessfully sought the Republican nomination for city clerk.For First Time, Democrats Choose A Black for Mayor in New Haven, Associated Press (September 14, 1989).
In 1989, Moran–then "a self-described housewife and real-estate broker" without experience in public office—won the Republican nomination for mayor in an upset, narrowly defeating the party-endorsed candidate, former mayor Leonard S. Paoletta, with 2,004 votes (50.4%) to Paoletta's 1,972 votes (49.6%). Moran proceeded to defeat two-term incumbent mayor Thomas W. Bucci. She received support mainly from white voters,The 1989 Elections: Connecticut: New Haven Picks First Black Mayor, New York Times (November 8, 1989). and argued that under Bucci crime went up as and financial issues became worse. Moran was a Republican nominee in a heavily Democratic city, yet won the election by 11 percentage points. Moran was sworn in at the Klein Memorial Auditorium on November 13, 1989. Her victory was considered an upset by observers and was understood to be a rejection of Bucci rather than an acceptance of her policies which called for "cutting city services, except for police and fire" and not increasing taxes except during a potential municipal bankruptcy.
Mayor of Bridgeport In 1988, the year prior to her election, the State of Connecticut had imposed a financial review board for the city.Gerald Benjamin & Richard P. Nathan, Regionalism and Realism: A Study of Governments in the New York Metropolitan Area (Bookings Institution Press: 2001), p. 13.
In 1991, Moran became famous for filing a municipal bankruptcy petition for the city in U.S. bankruptcy court in an effort to avoid an 18 percent tax that the financial review board had proposed.Rob Sullivan, Political Corruption in Bridgeport: Scandal in the Park City (The History Press, 2014), p. 93.David Berman, Local Government and the States: Autonomy, Politics and Policy: Autonomy, Politics and Policy (Routledge, 2015). The petition was unsuccessful; the bankruptcy court determined that Bridgeport was not insolvent.Jeff Holtz, Bridgeport Mayor's Office, and Race for It, Drawing Spotlight as Usual, New York Times (June 10, 2007).Benjamin & Nathan, p. 13.
Moran's move was deeply unpopular, even vilified.Mary C. Moran, In 1991, bankruptcy was best for Bridgeport, Connecticut Post (September 14, 2012). The filing "made Connecticut's largest city a symbol of the nation's urban struggles."Kirk Johnson, Bridgeport Mayor Falls, but No Wide Anti-Incumbent Trend Is Seen, New York Times (November 6, 1991). In a 2012 op-ed, Moran defended the decision as the only way to address Bridgeport's steep structural budget deficits.
Moran lost the 1991 election to Joseph P. Ganim. Ganim received 15,768 votes (54%) compared to 10,951 for Moran and 2,258 for other candidates.Kirk Johnson, New Mayor in Bridgeport Faces the Same Old Problems, New York Times (November 7, 1991).
References